Yondr helps shows have a phone-free environment

You’ve probably at one point in time been to a show and wanted to scream at everyone to just put their freaking phones down and actually watch the show. Or you’ve probably be one of those who feel like taking pictures and videos every once in a while during a concert or comedy show. But artists are now starting to push back and demand that their audience don’t film any part of their shows. If you don’t want to be an Adele who verbally reprimanded a fan just a few weeks ago, a company called Yondr is offering an alternative to that.

How their product works isn’t super hi-tech and doesn’t involve a pulse that will temporarily kill all smartphones at a specified period of time. Instead, it is simply a neoprene pouch where you will keep your phone in when you enter a venue and it will remain locked in there for the duration of the show. No matter what you do, you will not be able to open it and bring your phone at any time during the show. You will only be able to unlock it when you go out of the venue and open it through one of their unlocking machines.

Several artists have already been contracting the company to keep their shows phone-free. This includes Chris Rock during his warm-up shows before the Oscars, the Guns N’ Roses “surprise” reunion gig, shows with Dave Chapelle, Louis C.K, and the Lumineers. The latest big name to insist on the audience not being able to use their devices during the show is Alicia Keys, particularly since she will be performing new songs from her follow-up album to 2012’s Girl on Fire.

While not everyone is thrilled to have this kind of restriction (some are saying that if artists don’t want their music to be heard, then don’t play it), there are also those who have rediscovered the joy of actually listening to shows without the distraction of their phones. Let’s see if this will catch on and if other similar products will make its way to the market as well.

VIA: Washington Post