Recommendations

Ask for consent

One very problematic aspect of this imagined object is that it doesn’t ask each user for consent when sharing video. Just like in face-to-face romantic relationships, relationships sustained by technology must include consent from both parties. Currently, most softwares ask you to agree to their terms and services, but this is a different kind of consent than required in romantic relationships. However, consent in sexual relationships requires an “enthusiastic yes” each time. This model of consent must be reflected in our technologies as well.

Provide information only when necessary

One trend that our group saw in the Internet of Things industry is the overload of information. Designers of IoT objects seem to think that more information makek a product more useful and desirable. However, our situation illustrates the destructive nature of that idea. Especially in relationships, more information is not always better, and can lead to distrust and paranoia. We challenge designers to flip this idea on its head and provide information only when it is necessary. This is a harder design challenge, because designers must really know their user and what they want.