Apple granted patent to stop you from recording shows with your iPhone

New Apple patent could stop you from taking photos and recording videos at shows.

It seems like in today’s age of live music, fans are more watching the show through their mobile phones than with their own eyes, desperate to Instagram/tweet/Facebook/Snapchat moments from the performance. DJs, singers, actors have been telling fans to put their cell phones away for years. This is a problem Apple is seeking to solve in a patent first applied for in 2011 and granted today …

The patent describes the camera detecting an infrared signal and interpreting the data. One signal could be used to disable both still photography and video recording.

For example, an infrared emitter can be located in areas where picture or video capture is prohibited, and the emitter can generate infrared signals with encoded data that includes commands to disable the recording functions of devices. An electronic device can then receive the infrared signals, decode the data and temporarily disable the device’s recording function based on the command.

img USPTO
iphone img USPTO

These infrared emitters could also be used to automatically display information about the object you’re viewing or photographing.

An infrared emitter can be located near an object and generate infrared signals with encoded data that includes information about that object. An electronic device can then receive the infrared signals, decode the data and display the information about the object to the user.