. . . And I feel so guilty, I just have to get it off my electronic-chest, and confess it here . . . in front of all of you.

I . . . I . . . took a video of a Broadway show.

I know, I know.  But please, don’t judge me yet.  First, watch this 10 second clip of Janis Joplin that I shot from row J.

Now before you send the Broadway Usher Police after me, understand that I didn’t do it because I’m a crazed Joplin fangirl.  I did have a point.

I did it to demonstrate that if we think taking photos and videos of performances is bad now, well just wait, because it’s about to get a lot worse.  You see, not one person in that audience knew I was shooting that video.

Because I shot it with my new Google Glass.

If you haven’t seen Google Glass, it’s an eyeglass like device that can shoot stills and video faster than Joplin can riff!  It’s operated discreetly by a slight swipe and a tap and everything you see is instantly captured and shareable.

Incredible marketing opportunities abound (I could have sent that video around the world seconds after it happened without anyone knowing and without me having to stop watching the show (not looking down at my phone, or typing anything.  It’s communication multi-tasking!))

But it’s obviously intruding in areas that should be protected.

So what do we do?  What can we do?

Sure, Glass will become more instantly recognizable by the Usher Police after it goes mass market.  They can ask people to remove them (and then people will put them back on and take some shots and then off they come).  But see, Glass is just the beginning.  The cameras will get smaller, easier to operate, and capturing media will be practically undetectable.  At some point in the not-so-distant future . . . we’ll be taking pix and vid by just thinking about it!

We’re going to lose this fight.  It’s like drinking a beer in public.  Technology is putting a paper bag around cameras.  So maybe we should stop fighting and focus on making sure people use technology that doesn’t distract others . . . or allowing them to shoot only during designated times?  (I’ve always been a fan of allowing photos/vid during curtain calls – see this post.)

I don’t know, though. Even as I typed the above, it made me nervous.  I’ll admit we have a problem, and at the same time that problem could be one of the biggest weapons we have in modern day marketing.

And I’ll also admit I don’t have a solution.

Do you?

(Oh, and while I’m at it . . . there’s another bit of technology that is infiltrating our airspace.  During the show last night, a guy two rows in front of me took a puff on an electronic cigarette.)

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