The Wearables Report: When Privacy Gets Really Personal

Back in April 2012 a report by Forrester analyst Sarah Rotman Epps argued that by 2015 “wearables will matter to every product strategist.”

Wearable technology is gathering pace, estimated to reach 10 million units this year, according to Deloitte Consulting. The amount and the quality of data that can be gleaned from a wearable device user is certainly a product strategist’s dream, but is a rich vein of information for brand communicators too potentially. It’s tempting to look at how data from wearables and the devices themselves can be factored into a converged communications mix, but doing so raises numerous new issues, not least where to draw the line on personal privacy.

The Wearables Report is a new study carried out by Zeno, in partnership with London’s Imperial College Business School, that takes an early look at these emerging communications considerations. The report unveils consumer thinking and privacy attitudes around wearables in the UK. Its findings and insights will be previewed in at a discussion event in London this evening, and shared publicly this Friday.

In particular, The Wearables Report looks at the amount of privacy people are willing to sacrifice to brands, and on what basis.

Privacy has always been a personal matter, but the amount of data that can now be gathered and shared from a wrist or pair of glasses brings with it a need to truly understand the implications of this level of intimacy. For brands, there are considerations like communicating in a more human way, and understanding the nature of the consumer trade-off between privacy and personal need for information.

Look out for more on this tomorrow once the full report is published.