Google Glass has definitely caught the eye of geeks all around the world. After the skydiving spectacle at Google I/O last year, people everywhere have been wondering they will have to do and how much they will have to pay to get their hands on the product. As with all new technology though, there are always going to be people and places who oppose it. And on Friday, Google met its first challenger in this battle.
The 5 Point, which is a local Seattle dive bar, posted a warning on Facebook telling people that they will have to leave their Google Glasses at the door and won’t be allowed to wear them anywhere inside the building. The only people who currently have their hands on Project Glass are Google executives and select developers. The fact the 5 Point has already banned Glass is pretty amazing, considering they may have had one person wearing them try to enter.
“For the record, The 5 Point is the first Seattle business to ban in advance Google Glasses. And butt kickings will be encouraged for violators,” the bar wrote on Facebook.
The owner of the bar, Dave Meinert, says that because his establishment is so close to Amazon, they often have groups of tech geeks visit it. “It’s OK if you wear them,” he says. “I just don’t want them worn inside.”
“I’m a thought leader. First you have to understand the culture of the 5 Point, which is a sometimes seedy, maybe notorious place,” Meinert explained in an interview. “People want to go there and be not known … and definitely don’t want to be secretly filmed or videotaped and immediately put on the Internet.”
While he admits that part of the Facebook post was meant to induce laughter, Meinert assures us he is serious about the ban. “Part of this is a joke, to be funny on Facebook, and get reaction. But part of it’s serious, because we don’t let people film other people or take photos unwanted of people in the bar, because it is kind of a private place that people go.”
This will undoubted be a problem for Google as they try to get Google Glass in the hands of general consumers. Many businesses will most likely ban their employees from wearing them, as they do not want their plans or internal documents being secretly recorded. Google will also have a hard time securing teenagers, as schools will definitely be one of the first places to ban Google Glass.
What do you think about places trying to ban Google’s latest endeavor? Let us know down in the comments!