Someone will be playing Pokemon Go instead of watching the road -- and someone will be seriously injured or even die. Either the people in the car, or some unfortunate soul about their business, will pay the price.
Estimates suggest that Nintendo's smash hit mobile game has been downloaded more often than Tinder, and is fast approaching Twitter in popularity. That's an awful lot of people with heads buried in phones -- and that's after only one week of downloads in just three countries (so far) across the world.
Sooner or later, some of those players will make a potentially deadly discovery: you can play Pokemon Go from your car.
Estimates suggest that Nintendo's smash hit mobile game has been downloaded more often than Tinder, and is fast approaching Twitter in popularity. That's an awful lot of people with heads buried in phones -- and that's after only one week of downloads in just three countries (so far) across the world.
Sooner or later, some of those players will make a potentially deadly discovery: you can play Pokemon Go from your car.
I've felt the temptation myself. Driving around town, all those PokeStops whizzing by...it seems so easy to reach for the phone on my dash and give one a quick spin. Wait, is that a rare Pokemon? It's just a tap and a swipe away...
But so is a deadly auto accident, one of the leading causes of death for teens. (It's the leading cause in the United States.)
Washington State is already warning players of the danger. And one confirmed (non-fatal) Pokemon Go-related auto accident has already taken place.
So here's my humble proposal to you: Let's convince Pokemon Go developer Niantic to offer a reward for drivers who don't touch their phones.
The real genius of Pokemon Go is how it uses technology to bring people together in the real world. People who never would have met or spoken are now out of their homes, walking around town, getting exercise, striking up conversations with strangers and building friendships on the fly.
It's all because Pokémon Go uses our phones' GPS to highlight real-world locations where tiny cute magical creatures and items can be found -- and when you find someone else at those locations playing Pokémon Go, you automatically have something in common. You don't need to find an ice breaker to strike up a conversation.
All Niantic needs to do is take those conversations and that technology one step further: "Let's carpool together."
But so is a deadly auto accident, one of the leading causes of death for teens. (It's the leading cause in the United States.)
Washington State is already warning players of the danger. And one confirmed (non-fatal) Pokemon Go-related auto accident has already taken place.
So here's my humble proposal to you: Let's convince Pokemon Go developer Niantic to offer a reward for drivers who don't touch their phones.
The real genius of Pokemon Go is how it uses technology to bring people together in the real world. People who never would have met or spoken are now out of their homes, walking around town, getting exercise, striking up conversations with strangers and building friendships on the fly.
It's all because Pokémon Go uses our phones' GPS to highlight real-world locations where tiny cute magical creatures and items can be found -- and when you find someone else at those locations playing Pokémon Go, you automatically have something in common. You don't need to find an ice breaker to strike up a conversation.
All Niantic needs to do is take those conversations and that technology one step further: "Let's carpool together."
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