So Thursday, I went to the local pharmacy for some ear drops.

I live in Spain and habla Espana muy poco.

So I used Google translate to communicate with the pharmacist.

So just now, at the end of another thread on the STW forum, I suddenly get an advert, in Spanish, for… ear drops.

Still think you’re not being watched? 😯

I still can’t get my head round something on the TV yesterday. I was watching the Edinburgh XC running thing on BBC1 and they did a feature about getting into running and go to the BBC website and type in your postcode and they’ll find local running clubs for you.

All the while the advert is showing someone typing the postcode into the search box.

And the postcode they type in was so close to mine (the letters all correct, just the numbers differed by a single digit) and the house number was mine.

Huge coincidence or can the advert know that from my smart TV web connection or something?

No different to typing it into a search bar.

If you read the terms and conditions of google translate it probably even tells you.

Don’t be so paranoid theotherjonv, you’ve left your window open by the way.

GoogleAds: Not surprised, it’s how google make their money?

theotherjonv: coincidence.

Yo hablo

Really?

suppose my postcode is AB2 3CC, and my house number 456

Their example of someone typing into the box was AB22 3CC and house 456.

I’m still 😯

theotherjonv: Based on your description I reckon so. It sounds like regular broadcast television. In order to do what you suspect the BBC would need to send out some kind of signal embedded in the transmission that triggers specific code on your TV which possibly takes your IP address approximates your postcode (or the actual stored postcode) and seamlessly places it on screen in the specified location to tally with the voiceover. This would have to work for all makes and models of smart TV’s and also have a backup version that worked for non smart TV’s too.

I’m no broadcast digital whizz so that may well be theoretically possible but it’s a hell of an elaborate setup for promoting a regional running club. So on balance of probabilities and without seeing it first hand I’d go with coincidence. Would be happy and enlightened to be proven wrong though.

The google one is much simpler, google, facebook etc track what your viewing and searching for in order to give better value to their customers who are advertisers. We are not the customers we are the commodity.