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California pondering electronic license plate advertisements

By | June 24, 2010, 1:28am PDT

Summary: It’s no secret to anyone that California has had some serious financial problems for over the last year. Innovation has always been seen as one of the ways of emerging from a money pit, and the Golden State has a surely unique idea this time: electronic license plate advertisements.

It’s no secret to anyone that California has had some serious financial problems for a long time now. Innovation has always been seen as one of the ways of emerging from a money pit, and the Golden State has a surely unique idea this time: electronic license plate advertisements.

State Senator Curren D. Price Jr. (D-Los Angeles) has proposed a bill that would authorize California’s DMV to research digital license plate technology and see if this project has any potential. How it would probably work is that a standard license plate would be displayed when the car is in motion, and then switch to a digital ad when stopped for more than four seconds. Yet the license plate number would be visible somewhere on the screen at all times.

It’s an intriguing idea, but there are certainly many, many questions unanswered about this concept. It’s not clear if digital license plates would be issued to all drivers in the state or just those who opt for it. Also, maybe looking at advertisements on cars would give drivers something else to stare at while stuck in LA traffic, but what if at an intersection the light turns green and you’re not paying attention? Still, the project is only in its early stages, so maybe there is something here.

How do you feel about digital ads on license plates? Is it the big idea or a disaster waiting to happen?

Disclaimer: I am from California, and I do love tofu. But this isn’t my license plate.

[Image via Mind Numbing Trivia]

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Advertisement, Financial, California, Financial Accounting, Advertising & Promotion, Finance, Marketing, Rachel King

Rachel King is a staff writer for ZDNet based in San Francisco.

Disclosure

Rachel King

Rachel King has no business relationships, affiliations, investments, or other potential conflicts of interest relating to the content posted in this blog.

Biography

Rachel King

Rachel King is a staff writer for CBS Interactive in San Francisco. Before serving as a contributing editor at ZDNet in New York City for two years, she previously worked for The Business Insider, FastCompany.com, CNN's San Francisco bureau and the U.S. Department of State. Rachel has also written for MainStreet.com, Irish America Magazine and the New York Daily News, among others. Rachel has a B.A. in Mass Communications and History from the University of California, Berkeley and a M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University, where she served as art director for the student magazine, Plated.

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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
Rebekah Anne Taylor 27th Jul 2010
@John Zern
I named my 64 1/2 Mustang BLOODED in California in the mid 80's. I moved to TEXAS in June of 2003 and someone stole my California BLOODED license plates. They were registered under Cathi Lynn Frodsham at that time. There are license plate thieves everywhere. My idea is to have my church issue personal plates to its membrs, with a donation, of course. This way, I know that no-one will STEAL MY PLATES?! Not just a shame and reality is that there is always JUSTICE!
Rebekah Anne Taylor ARTS PLATE in TEXAS: CAMEO
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So they are short on cash and their solution is to throw money at stupidity
John238 24th Jun 2010
Just how much are they spending on this research they are planning on doing? Just how much will they charge for the plate?

I for one would not want to pay an extra $200 or $300 or $400 (0n top of what I already pay) for plates that would be advertising whatever someone paid the state to put on my plates.

What if the advertiser turns out to be some brewery and the car owner is an alcoholic? What if the car owner is of a religion that forbids pork and the advertiser happens to be selling pork?

Nothing against condoms but I do not want to be driving around waiving at friends and family only to find out later that my license plate has been advertising the newest and most natural feeling condoms.

This research is going to be a money pit that ends up not producing anything.
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
thirtysix.irdsi 24th Jun 2010
@John238 that's how California got 6 billion in the hole, useless legislators with nothing better to do than think of more ridiculous ways to spend taxpayer dollars
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
LeonBA 28th Jun 2010
@thirtysix.irdsi - No, we got in the hole by having a ridiculous absolute 2/3 majority required to pass a budget, which makes it almost impossible for *any* legislature to pass one. It lets the minority hold the majority hostage to its demands, and prevents us from either raising taxes or reducing expenses, since either of those will always find at least a third of the body opposed to.
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From the office of what could possibly go wrong...
mr1972 24th Jun 2010
Do drivers need more distractions when they drive?
Say California manages to keep the unsavory advertisers out and they even manage to somehow not offend random groups of people.
What if, just what if the safe clean advertising works? All of a sudden I am confronted with a product or service that is the answer to everything I have been looking for. While I am trying to memorize the website or phone number or what ever contact information is on the ad, I run over a few children playing on the side walk. California is going to say it's my fault.

So what does California intend to tell the advertisers? Nobody will look at your ad because if they do and they hit someone California is not going to assume any liability. What is California going to tell motorist? You look at the ads and get in an accident and it's still your fault?

An advertiser has to know that they will have some responsibility for human tragedy, may be not legal as California would have to give them immunity from prosecution but still how much human blood does a brand want associated with it? Lots if you are a gun manufacturer may be? Then there is the flip side, why would an advertiser buy space they know no responsible person is going to be looking at?
So an advertiser would have to be pretty sociopathic to get involved in this sort of scheme. California has to be pretty sociopathic to get involved in this scheme.
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And then hack it to make it any license plate number you want
John Zern 24th Jun 2010
How long before someone figures out how to chane the number on the plate?
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
Mwendo 24th Jun 2010
@John Zern About 2 days. But that's no different than a criminal stealing plates from another car to use as their own.
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My EXACT thought
hiraghm@... 24th Jun 2010
@John Zern

I was thinking the same thing as soon as I read it.
Well, actually it was more like "Whoopee! Can't wait til the hackers put the DMV into a total and well-deserve chaotic mess!"
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
Garrett Williams 25th Jun 2010
@John Zern
What I see is some joker putting obscene words or pictures on everybody's plates, or worse, Rickrolling everybody visually(scrolling the lyrics to everybody, which would also waste power, whatever the power source is).
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
Rebekah Anne Taylor 27th Jul 2010
@John Zern
I named my 64 1/2 Mustang BLOODED in California in the mid 80's. I moved to TEXAS in June of 2003 and someone stole my California BLOODED license plates. They were registered under Cathi Lynn Frodsham at that time. There are license plate thieves everywhere. My idea is to have my church issue personal plates to its membrs, with a donation, of course. This way, I know that no-one will STEAL MY PLATES?! Not just a shame and reality is that there is always JUSTICE!
Rebekah Anne Taylor ARTS PLATE in TEXAS: CAMEO
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
CaptOska 24th Jun 2010
more evidence showing that there should be an intelligence test to pass before being able to run for a government position.
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
P. Dickason, CNE, MCSE, CCA 24th Jun 2010
If the ads are on my car then I want the revenue from it >:)
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
sboverie 24th Jun 2010
@P. Dickason, CNE, MCSE, CCA
Good point, I even remove the dealer stickers off of my cars. Why should I advertise for the dealer much less anyone else.

The idea of having an electronic license plate is silly. Governor Schwartzenegger reduced the vehicle license fee when he came into office. It was nice to have a lowered registration cost but it caused a lot of problems with budgets everywhere in the state.

The state legislature is a bitterly divided one and it has not been able to put together a budget on time. Part of the problem is the requirement for a super majority to pass a budget and the rest of the problem is caused by partisan agendas (the left and the right are guilty of obstruction). The super majority requirement allows any minority party to derail a mediocre budget proposal; the end results tend to use tricks to balance the budget with the tricks being inadequate to help for more than a couple of months.
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How stupid can government get?
sullivanjc 24th Jun 2010
Purposely putting another distraction to drivers on the cars in front of them? I wonder how many accidents or even fatalities that would cause. It's a no-brainer this is a stupid idea. Even spending money to research it is idiotic
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I Agree!
hiraghm@... 24th Jun 2010
@sullivanjc
We need to totally redesign automobiles. No windows, stuff outside might distract. Single passenger only, because if there's more than one person, they might be distracted by talking.
Total computer control, with no driver feedback, because feedback might distract him, too.
Basically a rolling sensory deprivation chamber lined in cotton batting is what we need.
Oh, and robotic arms to change the driver's diaper for him.
Nah, let the driver sit in his own pooh; otherwise he might be distracted by the changing.
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
Tad_z 24th Jun 2010
Totally stupid Dude
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
brichter 24th Jun 2010
Welcome to California. Our politicians are clueless, and the liberal voters continue to give them jobs.

Come to California, we hire the handicapped to run our state.
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
Rebekah Anne Taylor 27th Jul 2010
@brichter
That is why I left to Texas to find some real REPUBLICANS. I was born and raised in Los Angeles and encountered too many SOCIALIST "give me all your money, I don't have to work my government job" and own a huge home with her PSYCH husband. She took disability "brain dead" gets 80%??? of GOVT salary, got her "EDUCATION & DOCTORATE" paid for with our money and the Jamaican @@@@@ claims discrimination.
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
georgem@... 24th Jun 2010
First, they'll flash the ads in both English and Spanish, then make it illegal to read 'em while driving. The revenue won't come from the advertising, it'll be from the citations. Gotta' love that California logic...
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
kaneb80 24th Jun 2010
i thought i love to f u meant something else
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
thirtysix.irdsi 24th Jun 2010
@kaneb80 ROFLMAO
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
michael.tindall@... 24th Jun 2010
actually, it IS different. If you steal someone else's plate, they will notice. It will be reported, and there will be consequences. If you simply CLONE someone else's plate, particularly from a similar vehicle, NO ONE will notice. The whole system of vehicle identification and accountability will COLLAPSE. Planning to rob a bank? why steal a getaway car, when there's a nice old lady up the street with an indentical car? Don't feel like renewing your plate (and thus, paying your renewal fee)? Reprogram the "sticker". Even LEGITIMATE claims of, say, a hit-and-run will be countered with "not me....it MUST have been a plate cloner!". And now, the cash-strapped state government of CA will spend millions to determine that this is a bad idea. To have a car that sends out an RFID signal of itself might be useful (though scary from privacy standpoint), but it won't help visually identify the vehicle to the witnesses of crimes, traffic cameras, etc.
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
ronangel 24th Jun 2010
Although I am in the UK and an electronics engineer I Would love to have one on my car.No more problems with traffic cameras at the flick of a switch...
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RE California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
windozefreak 24th Jun 2010
With free registration, I'd bite. What the heck? I now pay for satellite service, and would you know it, i pay for them to advertise to me. If others are getting these services without the shopping channel, jewelery channel, etc, etc., let me know how you do it.
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Why Stop There?
MrLucasBrice 24th Jun 2010
Why stop at license plates? Maybe California can force residents to have electronic ads tatooed into their faces?
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
opcom 24th Jun 2010
"So what does California intend to tell the advertisers? Nobody will look at your ad because if they do and they hit someone California is not going to assume any liability. What is California going to tell motorist? You look at the ads and get in an accident and it's still your fault? "

Maybe this will be the first example of a cockroach running in two directions at once when the light is turned on.

The idea is idiotic. I want the license numbers of other vehicles to be plainly visible, full size at all times.

It might take 2 days to hack the plate from a software point, but it will take 15 minutes to hack the hardware so it always thinks the car is moving and never shows an ad. To make it work on all vehicles, the hardware interface has to be real simple. That is where we say goodbye to the ads.
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
rschoonh@... 25th Jun 2010
Absolutely the most ludicrous brain-dead idea imaginable. Something you would expect to find in a satire or parody of government, but sadly all too real.
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
Mnighthawk 27th Jun 2010
Offer an opt-out ad-free license plate for ... $100 more per year. DMV ears more from opt-out than from advertising.
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
Rebekah Anne Taylor 27th Jul 2010
I named my 64 1/2 Mustang BLOODED in California in the mid 80's. I moved to TEXAS in June of 2003 and someone stole my California BLOODED license plates. They were registered under Cathi Lynn Frodsham at that time. There are license plate thieves everywhere. My idea is to have my church issue personal plates to its membrs, with a donation, of course. This way, I know that no-one will STEAL MY PLATES?! Not just a shame and reality is that there is always JUSTICE!
Rebekah Anne Taylor ARTS PLATE in TEXAS: CAMEO
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
Rebekah Anne Taylor 27th Jul 2010
I named my 64 1/2 Mustang BLOODED in California in the mid 80's. I moved to TEXAS in June of 2003 and someone stole my California BLOODED license plates. They were registered under Cathi Lynn Frodsham at that time. There are license plate thieves everywhere. My idea is to have my church issue personal plates to its membrs, with a donation, of course. This way, I know that no-one will STEAL MY PLATES?! Not just a shame and reality is that there is always JUSTICE!
Rebekah Anne Taylor ARTS PLATE in TEXAS: CAMEO
0 Votes
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RE: California pondering electronic license plate advertisements
Rebekah Anne Taylor 27th Jul 2010
I named my 64 1/2 Mustang BLOODED in California in the mid 80's. I moved to TEXAS in June of 2003 and someone stole my California BLOODED license plates. They were registered under Cathi Lynn Frodsham at that time. There are license plate thieves everywhere. My idea is to have my church issue personal plates to its membrs, with a donation, of course. This way, I know that no-one will STEAL MY PLATES?! Not just a shame and reality is that there is always JUSTICE!
Rebekah Anne Taylor ARTS PLATE in TEXAS: CAMEO

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