Popular restaurants, pubs, and theaters in the United Kingdom are banning or restricting the use of smart glasses. This move follows growing privacy concerns regarding devices capable of discreetly capturing images and video.
Wetherspoons, which operates approximately 800 pubs in the UK and Ireland, is among the businesses implementing these restrictions. The company has banned Ray-Ban Meta glasses, which are capable of recording, in its UK locations.
Wetherspoons operates approximately 800 branches across the UK and Ireland where smart glasses are now restricted.
Meta glasses offer the possibility of surveillance. This violates rules and common sense.
Tim Martin, the founder of Wetherspoons, stated that taking images of people in pubs without their permission is against existing rules. He explained that the company will ask customers to turn off the cameras on their smart glasses because they facilitate recording without being noticed.
The chain does not ban the use of smartphones, despite their ability to record images secretly. The distinction is made because smart glasses attract less attention during recording compared to holding up a phone.
Other hospitality venues are adopting similar stances. Jeremy King, who operates high-end restaurants in London, does not want customers wearing smart glasses regardless of whether they are recording or not.
Broader restrictions and privacy debates
Smart glasses produced through the partnership between US billionaire Mark Zuckerberg's Meta and the Italian eyewear brand Ray-Ban have sparked privacy debates in Europe. Consequently, some schools and event organizers in the UK have also banned Meta glasses due to privacy concerns.
These devices have previously faced restrictions in other sectors. Courts in the US state of New York have banned the use of smart glasses. Additionally, students cannot use them in exams such as the SAT, and restrictions apply in certain parts of passenger ships.
