I expected this to be complaining about the screens existing being unnecessary and irritating for consumers (and, to be clear, that's true), but I did not expect the companies cat-fighting over...
I expected this to be complaining about the screens existing being unnecessary and irritating for consumers (and, to be clear, that's true), but I did not expect the companies cat-fighting over how shit they were. Made it more enjoyable for me lol
It’s hilarious but also very depressing to know how much time, money, and labor was wasted on this project who’s sole purpose was to advertise and collect data against people’s will.
It’s hilarious but also very depressing to know how much time, money, and labor was wasted on this project who’s sole purpose was to advertise and collect data against people’s will.
archive link: https://archive.is/amdF9 J. B. Crawford wrote about this in 2023. A pretty entertaining read as well: https://computer.rip/2023-10-22-cooler-screens.html
Them getting involved with Theranos was possibly higher up on the list of bonehead moves. Rough calculations show that cost them close to $200 million in the end as well between investments and...
Them getting involved with Theranos was possibly higher up on the list of bonehead moves. Rough calculations show that cost them close to $200 million in the end as well between investments and settlements. Walgreens doesn't seem to be very well run...
I worked in pharmacy claims support for a government healthcare payer and Walgreens was the absolute worst to deal with. Their software was apparently awful and their staff didn't know how to use...
I worked in pharmacy claims support for a government healthcare payer and Walgreens was the absolute worst to deal with. Their software was apparently awful and their staff didn't know how to use it. Also, at one point they apparent just lost three full years of payment records for every store in the state. Just vanished into thin air.
I wonder if anyone more familliar with the company would be able to tell us if Walgreens is having a hard time because of a shrinking market or if their hard times are caused by continuously...
I wonder if anyone more familliar with the company would be able to tell us if Walgreens is having a hard time because of a shrinking market or if their hard times are caused by continuously terrible decisions by the C-suite.
As if we're not bombarded with ads enough already, now being able to see what is in a cooler before we open it is obscured by ads and incorrect fake representations. I hope Cooler Screens loses...
As if we're not bombarded with ads enough already, now being able to see what is in a cooler before we open it is obscured by ads and incorrect fake representations. I hope Cooler Screens loses and goes out of business and I hope any retailers hostile enough to install similar products have a similar experience
Classic SV tech startup MO of making up problems that don't really exist and selling products to solve them.
I absolutely detest the widespread usage of LCD screens for advertising on every square inch of retail space. It's annoying, and distracting, and just somehow fills me with this overwhelming sense...
I absolutely detest the widespread usage of LCD screens for advertising on every square inch of retail space. It's annoying, and distracting, and just somehow fills me with this overwhelming sense of despair, like I'm living in blade runner.
I especially hate the loud, auto playing ads at gas stations that have increasingly bigger screens. I always instantly look for a mute button, which I've started noticing many don't have anymore.
I honestly cannot stand advertising, and I think we'd be better off if the entire industry ceased to exist, but at a minimum I really wish the government would step in and regulate some of this stuff so I'm not bombarded everywhere I look in public so that some executive asshole somewhere can get his bonus this year.
I abhor the industry, think we'd be better off without it, and think it should be under extreme regulation, or even regulated out of existence, which I would support. I would even be okay if it...
I abhor the industry, think we'd be better off without it, and think it should be under extreme regulation, or even regulated out of existence, which I would support.
I would even be okay if it kills thousands of websites that rely on it in the process, but that's a different story somewhat. Regardless the strong regulation should at least at a minimum, apply to all public physical spaces, and even some private ones
All products, locations, and especially services where people are already spending money should not be allowed to show ads to make ad revenue on top of the other money they are making already. Ad revenue as an entire paradigm should not exist.
I can moderate these views somewhat to preserve some online services but if ads are going to exist in some form, the regulation about the size, type, placement, language, length, volume, etc should be extremely regulated
The products themselves are ads. Food companies pay supermarkets to decide where their products are shelved. Any one with kids or anyone who was went to the market as a kid probably knows about...
The products themselves are ads. Food companies pay supermarkets to decide where their products are shelved. Any one with kids or anyone who was went to the market as a kid probably knows about appealing cereal boxes can be.
I'm particularly irritated at advertisement screens generally. If you go to a big enough tourist destination, they become absolutely insane. The Las Vegas Strip is particularly bad, with every...
I'm particularly irritated at advertisement screens generally. If you go to a big enough tourist destination, they become absolutely insane. The Las Vegas Strip is particularly bad, with every Casino having at least one huge one, and some buildings - notably the MSG sphere - have surfaces that are entirely made up of a giant screen! Las Vegas has always had obnoxiously large advertisements that took up entire buildings - the most tasteless one I've ever seen was one face of the Luxor being painted orange and having the Doritos logo plastered over it. But screens make things much, much worse because they are not only moving and harder to ignore, they're also obnoxiously bright. When walking outside of Resorts World they have these huge screens on multiple scenes that make the ground in front of them look like daylight whenever they have white on the screen. But the things they have playing on them basically make them flash, so it's incredibly disorienting even when you're not looking at it.
Im with the redditor who commented 'if only there were some kind of technology to allow us to see whats inside'. Yep. Screens to put more ads in front of people? What a pain. Ranks right up there...
Im with the redditor who commented 'if only there were some kind of technology to allow us to see whats inside'. Yep. Screens to put more ads in front of people? What a pain. Ranks right up there with the ones on gas pumps that yap at you for the three minutes it takes to fill your tank.
There is more than one reason I love the Big Island of Hawaii. They dont allow advertising for the sake of advertising. No billboards beside the roads, no huge signs as you enter the towns, and any roadside advertising has to be on removable banners. Its refreshing to see how beautiful the world can be when you DON'T have to see a sign or screen on every square inch of available real estate.
It's staggering how much advertising is inescapable in our lives, constantly pawing for our attention, infecting every space. My girlfriend was using uber the other day and all the cars were...
It's staggering how much advertising is inescapable in our lives, constantly pawing for our attention, infecting every space. My girlfriend was using uber the other day and all the cars were little fanduel icons, some kind of tie-in I suppose. She sent me a video on instagram, a reel, had a big watermark for "Stake", the gambling company. Didn't even notice it until I pointed it out. Even when you pay to receive a premium tier of a subscription, it's only a matter of time until they start doing the calculus and throw ads in there. The allure of the advertising money printer is too strong to overcome for businesspeople.
Anyway it's a good thing a rich person who made their empire off of insidious targeted advertising isn't cozing up to presidents and worming their way in to government yet, ah shit wait fuck oh no.
Vermont has similar laws about billboard advertisements, likely for the same reason (old pro-tourism legislation). It's always a bit of a shock going out of state and seeing how much of this...
Vermont has similar laws about billboard advertisements, likely for the same reason (old pro-tourism legislation). It's always a bit of a shock going out of state and seeing how much of this garbage everyone else has to deal with.
Nothing in Vermont law stops gas pumps from yapping at you, unfortunately.
Okay - advertising is a blight on humanity and billboards in particular should be outlawed. Maybe architecture would begin to matter again if we couldn't hide crumbling buildings and HVAC rooftops...
Okay - advertising is a blight on humanity and billboards in particular should be outlawed. Maybe architecture would begin to matter again if we couldn't hide crumbling buildings and HVAC rooftops behind ads.
I saw these abominations IRL. It was only a matter of time before someone filed a lawsuit for some sensory assault/autistic spectrum/seizure health issue. They were - pardon my language - just fucking offensive. They also had (or were bound to have at some point) all sorts of privacy issues. Eye tracking 1984 big brother kinda stuff.
...and the stupidity! Cover the product to advertise. It doesn't get more American Startup than that. There's a whole season of IRL Silicon Valley (the show) in this story.
All that said, I'd be lying if I didn't admit there's some small part of me that wants to go to El Paso and see if I can get a big-ass monitor on the cheap.
My first technical job was for a digital signage company that, in the last little bit I was there, was ramping up efforts to offer what this Cooler Screens Inc. has attempted. It elicited in me a...
My first technical job was for a digital signage company that, in the last little bit I was there, was ramping up efforts to offer what this Cooler Screens Inc. has attempted. It elicited in me a very yucky feeling. I saw the product demos in the office. They were terrible.
Over the years, and at that time, I've done a lot to avoid advertisements and detest how much they are imposed upon me. Now I work in ad tech, so I'm probably some kind of hypocrite. But it is somehow the best gig I've ever had and the most hopeful I've been for a path to retirement before my body wears out.
I cannot imagine how replacing glass doors with advertising would "enhance the customer experience". If the grocery store I frequent did this I would quickly find somewhere else to shop.
I cannot imagine how replacing glass doors with advertising would "enhance the customer experience". If the grocery store I frequent did this I would quickly find somewhere else to shop.
I expected this to be complaining about the screens existing being unnecessary and irritating for consumers (and, to be clear, that's true), but I did not expect the companies cat-fighting over how shit they were. Made it more enjoyable for me lol
It’s hilarious but also very depressing to know how much time, money, and labor was wasted on this project who’s sole purpose was to advertise and collect data against people’s will.
Absolutely. The Schadenfreude is the best part of this whole thing.
archive link: https://archive.is/amdF9
J. B. Crawford wrote about this in 2023. A pretty entertaining read as well:
https://computer.rip/2023-10-22-cooler-screens.html
Didn't archive the photos though lol
My Walgreens already pulled them out after a couple years. They were always broken.
Worst decision ever. Waste of resources
Them getting involved with Theranos was possibly higher up on the list of bonehead moves. Rough calculations show that cost them close to $200 million in the end as well between investments and settlements. Walgreens doesn't seem to be very well run...
I worked in pharmacy claims support for a government healthcare payer and Walgreens was the absolute worst to deal with. Their software was apparently awful and their staff didn't know how to use it. Also, at one point they apparent just lost three full years of payment records for every store in the state. Just vanished into thin air.
I wonder if anyone more familliar with the company would be able to tell us if Walgreens is having a hard time because of a shrinking market or if their hard times are caused by continuously terrible decisions by the C-suite.
As if we're not bombarded with ads enough already, now being able to see what is in a cooler before we open it is obscured by ads and incorrect fake representations. I hope Cooler Screens loses and goes out of business and I hope any retailers hostile enough to install similar products have a similar experience
Classic SV tech startup MO of making up problems that don't really exist and selling products to solve them.
I absolutely detest the widespread usage of LCD screens for advertising on every square inch of retail space. It's annoying, and distracting, and just somehow fills me with this overwhelming sense of despair, like I'm living in blade runner.
I especially hate the loud, auto playing ads at gas stations that have increasingly bigger screens. I always instantly look for a mute button, which I've started noticing many don't have anymore.
I honestly cannot stand advertising, and I think we'd be better off if the entire industry ceased to exist, but at a minimum I really wish the government would step in and regulate some of this stuff so I'm not bombarded everywhere I look in public so that some executive asshole somewhere can get his bonus this year.
I abhor the industry, think we'd be better off without it, and think it should be under extreme regulation, or even regulated out of existence, which I would support.
I would even be okay if it kills thousands of websites that rely on it in the process, but that's a different story somewhat. Regardless the strong regulation should at least at a minimum, apply to all public physical spaces, and even some private ones
All products, locations, and especially services where people are already spending money should not be allowed to show ads to make ad revenue on top of the other money they are making already. Ad revenue as an entire paradigm should not exist.
I can moderate these views somewhat to preserve some online services but if ads are going to exist in some form, the regulation about the size, type, placement, language, length, volume, etc should be extremely regulated
The products themselves are ads. Food companies pay supermarkets to decide where their products are shelved. Any one with kids or anyone who was went to the market as a kid probably knows about appealing cereal boxes can be.
I'm particularly irritated at advertisement screens generally. If you go to a big enough tourist destination, they become absolutely insane. The Las Vegas Strip is particularly bad, with every Casino having at least one huge one, and some buildings - notably the MSG sphere - have surfaces that are entirely made up of a giant screen! Las Vegas has always had obnoxiously large advertisements that took up entire buildings - the most tasteless one I've ever seen was one face of the Luxor being painted orange and having the Doritos logo plastered over it. But screens make things much, much worse because they are not only moving and harder to ignore, they're also obnoxiously bright. When walking outside of Resorts World they have these huge screens on multiple scenes that make the ground in front of them look like daylight whenever they have white on the screen. But the things they have playing on them basically make them flash, so it's incredibly disorienting even when you're not looking at it.
Im with the redditor who commented 'if only there were some kind of technology to allow us to see whats inside'. Yep. Screens to put more ads in front of people? What a pain. Ranks right up there with the ones on gas pumps that yap at you for the three minutes it takes to fill your tank.
There is more than one reason I love the Big Island of Hawaii. They dont allow advertising for the sake of advertising. No billboards beside the roads, no huge signs as you enter the towns, and any roadside advertising has to be on removable banners. Its refreshing to see how beautiful the world can be when you DON'T have to see a sign or screen on every square inch of available real estate.
It's staggering how much advertising is inescapable in our lives, constantly pawing for our attention, infecting every space. My girlfriend was using uber the other day and all the cars were little fanduel icons, some kind of tie-in I suppose. She sent me a video on instagram, a reel, had a big watermark for "Stake", the gambling company. Didn't even notice it until I pointed it out. Even when you pay to receive a premium tier of a subscription, it's only a matter of time until they start doing the calculus and throw ads in there. The allure of the advertising money printer is too strong to overcome for businesspeople.
Anyway it's a good thing a rich person who made their empire off of insidious targeted advertising isn't cozing up to presidents and worming their way in to government yet, ah shit wait fuck oh no.
Vermont has similar laws about billboard advertisements, likely for the same reason (old pro-tourism legislation). It's always a bit of a shock going out of state and seeing how much of this garbage everyone else has to deal with.
Nothing in Vermont law stops gas pumps from yapping at you, unfortunately.
Okay - advertising is a blight on humanity and billboards in particular should be outlawed. Maybe architecture would begin to matter again if we couldn't hide crumbling buildings and HVAC rooftops behind ads.
I saw these abominations IRL. It was only a matter of time before someone filed a lawsuit for some sensory assault/autistic spectrum/seizure health issue. They were - pardon my language - just fucking offensive. They also had (or were bound to have at some point) all sorts of privacy issues. Eye tracking 1984 big brother kinda stuff.
...and the stupidity! Cover the product to advertise. It doesn't get more American Startup than that. There's a whole season of IRL Silicon Valley (the show) in this story.
All that said, I'd be lying if I didn't admit there's some small part of me that wants to go to El Paso and see if I can get a big-ass monitor on the cheap.
Now I am wishing quick service and fast food restaurants start getting rid of their dynamic tv menus. I doubt it, but I'll remain hopeful.
I'm pretty sure the ones in McDonald's cause a marked increase in the average order value.
My first technical job was for a digital signage company that, in the last little bit I was there, was ramping up efforts to offer what this Cooler Screens Inc. has attempted. It elicited in me a very yucky feeling. I saw the product demos in the office. They were terrible.
Over the years, and at that time, I've done a lot to avoid advertisements and detest how much they are imposed upon me. Now I work in ad tech, so I'm probably some kind of hypocrite. But it is somehow the best gig I've ever had and the most hopeful I've been for a path to retirement before my body wears out.
I cannot imagine how replacing glass doors with advertising would "enhance the customer experience". If the grocery store I frequent did this I would quickly find somewhere else to shop.