by Jason Snell
Apple gets patent to disable cameras
Collin Robertson at Stereogum reports about an Apple patent that would allow the phone to sense an infrared signal at a concert and turn off photography capabilities:
That might be OK … assuming the technology is only used at concerts and doesn’t extend to, like, disabling phone cameras during instances of police brutality and/or sociopolitical/religious unrest.
Nailed it. Preventing piracy (at concerts, live theater, movie theaters, etc.) is something we can probably agree to on principle, but how long would it take for police departments or oppressive governments or all-purpose creeps to take such functionality and use it to keep from getting caught on video?
I hope this is one patent Apple puts in the drawer and never, ever implements.