Unless you live in a cave someplace in the deep North Woods you have heard a lot of the buzz about drones. And even if you do live in a cave, it is likely you have still seen or heard a drone or two in your lifetime. Drones are becoming an intricate part of our society and use cases are becoming more public every day.
A Story A Day & the FAA
Just last week, a DJI Phantom graced the cover of the New York Post after two men were arrested for allegedly flying their drone too close to the George Washington Bridge and a NYPD helicopter.
Plenty of other nationally-facing news sources, including Inside Edition, Katie Couric and CNN’s Erin Burnett, as well as smaller, local news stations like 10News in San Diego, CBS Pittsburgh, 16WAPT News in Jackson MS, have taken on drones – all in the last month.
The affordability and accessibility of drone tech is allowing anyone with a slight interest in the technology to get their hands on it -and news media is jumping at any chance to show it off to their viewers.
Speaking of using television to bring drones to the masses…
Celebrities Love Drones
Celebrity endorsement is a crucial part of convincing the public a product is worth their time and money. No drone company has officially inked a deal with a celebrity to promote a product, but that doesn’t mean famous faces aren’t involved.
For example, look at what Martha Stewart posted on her blog recently – along with dozens of photos of her farm taken with what she called, her new favorite toy:
“These drone-like, radio-controlled aircraft are lots of fun to play with and they take extraordinary photos. However, controlling them takes practice and getting used to. Since my farm has lots of open fields, [we] thought it would be the best place to get acquainted with his new toy. The results were amazing!”
On the complete other end of the spectrum, you have this ad for Sky Sports featuring Soccer star David Beckham:
The Future Is Closer Than You Think
No matter how you -or the FAA- tries to slice it, drones are here to stay. You can look at the good (precision agriculture), the bad (voyeurism) and the ugly (flying above a fraternity party) of drones, and the results are still the same. The applications and need for drones are becoming clearer every day, and as those needs increase, so will the lengths companies go to in order to facilitate public acceptance of drones.
CEO DroneLife.com, DroneRacingLife.com, and CMO of Jobfordrones.com. Principle at Spalding Barker Strategies. Has enjoyed working with and around the commercial drone industry for the last 10 years. Attendance and speaker at Industry Events such as Commercial UAV, InterGeo, Interdrone and others. Proud father of two. Enjoys karate, Sherlock Holmes, and interesting things. Subscribe to all things drone at DroneLife here. Email is Harry@dronelife.com. Make Sure that you WhiteList us in your email to make sure you get our Newsletter. Editor1@dronelife.com.
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