Your Toilet Paper Has a Price: Face-Scan or Watch an Ad in China's Public Restrooms
In a major Chinese tourist hub, the simple act of using the bathroom has become a high-tech transaction. A modern dispenser now requires you to show your face or watch a brief advertisement before the paper is released. This is part of a broader move toward surveillance and advertising embedded in everyday spaces.
In This Article:
How It Works: The Gatekeeper Dispenser
Visitors are greeted by a toilet-paper dispenser that uses facial recognition and on-screen ads to regulate access. Earlier versions limited paper to one small towel every ten minutes after a face scan. The newest variant makes watching a short ad mandatory; if you don’t want to watch, you can pay 0.5 yuan (about 7 cents) for entry. A clip shared by China Insider shows a young woman scanning a QR code, watching the ad, and receiving the roll.
Why It Was Introduced: Curbing Waste
The aim is to curb excessive toilet-paper waste observed in large public spaces. The system is intended to save resources, but it raises questions about accessibility for people with limited phone power or who don’t have a phone.
The Tradeoffs: Privacy, Access, and Public Life
Facial recognition and AI-enabled advertising bring convenience but also raise privacy concerns. Using public restrooms as testing grounds for surveillance prompts questions about who controls daily rituals. If a city introduces such a system, it signals a broader shift toward monetized and surveilled public utilities.
Takeaway: What This Means for Everyday Life
Technology is quietly reshaping mundane tasks. Balancing waste reduction, accessibility, and privacy will be a challenge for policymakers and designers. The question remains: should essential services like toilet paper be gated by ads or sensors, or are there more humane alternatives?
