How Google Glass Could Evolve Social Media

Everyone is talking about Google Glass. Ever since the gadget was first announced, social media moguls, businesses, app developers, tech geeks and marketers have been clamouring to find out exactly how this revolutionary, futuristic piece of tech is going to change the way we use social media. To some, Google Glass reminds us of the old futuristic films we saw as kids, and perhaps that is why people are getting so excited for its release – who wouldn’t want Terminator style vision? Others worry that in this world where we have become so immersed in social media and technology, we’re taking a step towards becoming cyborgs ourselves.

Google has already made it clear that the product won’t host ads, which is nice to know if you don’t want pop-ups blazing across your vision and distracting you from important things like driving… but many of the social media giants are already developing ways to integrate their service into Google Glass – can you imagine the latest Facebook status updates flashing across your vision? Whether you like the idea or not, it very well might be the next stage for social networking.

If you’re one of the pro-futurists that believes one day we’ll all be wearing Google Glass, then this is certainly the future of social – but how exactly will Google Glass change social media?

Well, first of all, let’s consider the face recognition technology that is emerging on Facebook. Facebook can spot pictures of your friends in photos, and ask you to tag them - it can even guess who they are. Google also has highly developed image recognition, so it is possible Google Glass could identify a person on social networks just by looking at their face. Convenient or creepy, we’re not sure, but it certainly could make networking a simpler process. Remember, Google Glass can already identify buildings, shops and local attractions, whilst recommending them based on your friends’ reviews. 

Another major feature of Google Glass is its location services. There’s going to be integration between Glass and Google Maps, and the possibilities to utilise a person’s location for advertising and social are well within Google’s capabilities. Imagine enjoying a great meal at a restaurant – could you in theory tweet a message to nearby Google Glass wearers to recommend that restaurant? It’s definitely taking things a stage further than Google reviews.

Let’s not forget one of Google Glass’s primary abilities; live stream video and first person images. This has been one of the most controversial points of the gadget – how are passers by supposed to know if they’re being filmed? Could you film a movie with Google Glass, or an exhibition? It’s a major worry for those concerned about privacy and piracy. However, in terms of social media this could lead to a massive influx of use on more visual social channels, like Youtube, Instagram and Vine.

In theory, you could take part in live tutorials with social experts, you could get a behind the scenes look at events, you could let your friends and family experience special occasions first hand, or even post hundreds more cute cat videos to the internet. It’s fantastic news for businesses and marketers – images and video often prove to be considerably more engaging to fans and followers.

So is Google Glass invasive or revolutionary in terms of social media? Before you answer, consider this – there was a time when many people were set against ever having a Facebook profile due to privacy reasons, but now many of those same people have signed up for the service. As long as privacy statements are clear, it looks like our day-to-day lives and social media are about to be combined.

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