New US bill proposes ban on 'silent camera phones'

Posted: 28 January 2009

A new US bill, the 'Camera Phone Predator Alert Act', is being proposed by Rep. Peter King, to ensure that camera phones, such as the LG Renoir, make a distinct shutter sound, according to Cnet News. The Act would 'require any mobile phone containing a digital camera to sound a tone whenever a photograph is taken.' This tone would indicate to potential subjects that their photo is being taken, and could not be muted.

The text goes on to state that the reason for the Act's inception is, 'Congress finds that children and adolescents have been exploited by photographs taken in dressing rooms and public places with the use of a camera phone.'

Commentators have immediately spoken up about the implications and consequences of such a law being brought into place. One particular commentator, Thomas Hawk, has stated via his Digital Connection blog that he believes the proposed law 'is just plain stupid', before pointing out what he believes are the central flaws of the Act; most notably, he states that the Act only applies to camera phones and not standalone digital cameras, and that it will only apply to new phones, not the millions currently bring used worldwide. The proposed law also doesn't cover video recorded on camera phones, only still images.

What is very clear is that this is a heated debate, with as many people labelling the Act as 'fear-mongering', as there are claiming the Act is needed.

Whatever the outcome, it would seem likely that the UK will follow suit in trying to enact similar legislation. Such laws already exist, as has been noted by various commentators, in Japan and South Korea, both of which still have a flourishing camera phone market, and where phones such as the LG Renoir and Samsung Pixon, both Korean-made, are as popular as ever.