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Japanese hotel room costs $1 a night, but you have to livestream your stay
- lobster45 7y agoI can see absolutely no problems with this business model /sarcasm
- viraptor 7y agoSame but without sarcasm. If the deal is known and people are completely aware of the terms... why not? As long as you can ensure nobody is streamed without permission, I'm sure there's a number of people who are cool with it (livestream channels like that existed decade(s?) ago). And on the other side, there's going to be quite a few people interested in watching (big-brother-style reality tv pretty much validated that). And you can be sure some people staying there will try to push the "lewd act" boundary for fun, bringing in more views. Ultimately, this will be a better advertisement for that hotel than comparable money can buy online.
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- shakna 7y ago> And you can be sure some people staying there will try to push the "lewd act" boundary for fun, bringing in more views. > Ultimately, this will be a better advertisement for that hotel than comparable money can buy online. Until someone does go too far, and the hotel finds out that they're expected to police these livestreams to ensure certain meeting certain standards that are wide and seemingly arbitrary, and the hotel becomes liable for the behaviour of one of their guests. Japan has a lot of rules and regulations around what can be seen, produced, etc. for sexuality, just as a small example.
- 9nGQluzmnq3M 7y agoYup. There was a famous/notorious comedy TV show that livestreamed a guy living in an apartment stark naked, subsisting entirely on what he could win from magazine sweepstakes contests. The TV producers had to hire a video editor 24/7 to keep a little eggplant emoji over his privates. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nasubi https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nasubi
- jjakque 7y agoI actually remember this show. This was prior to reality TV shows and arguably before movie 'The Truman Show'. I did not had the honor to see this on TV, but I was been told and then checked out some Japanese websites (more like blogs, but before they were been called that) that provide text and photo updates on Nasubi's progress. A quick search today, here are the articles that archives its history: * https://www.projectcasting.com/news/nasubi-reality-show/ https://www.projectcasting.com/news/nasubi-reality-show/ * https://www.tofugu.com/japan/nasubi-naked-eggplant-man/ https://www.tofugu.com/japan/nasubi-naked-eggplant-man/
- viraptor 7y agoIf they don't monitor, delay, and edit the result - yes, they will run into issues. If they really stream it live, not just say so for novelty, that's definitely an issue.
- jacobwilliamroy 7y agoOne reason why not is that they're experimenting with product-ifying customers in an industry where the majority of profits are made off of 15% of customers. Sure, hotels will pretend like they want money from some rando who's only going to stay one weekend and then never return but the real money comes from regular repeat customers. If the math works out, you could be looking at a future where it's impossible to get a private hotel room without participating in some kind of loyalty program.
- lotsofpulp 7y agoEvery decent hotel I’ve been to requires identifying information to stay. Once they already have that , what’s the difference in participating in loyalty programs or not, other than one gets a little bit back with rewards?
- jacobwilliamroy 7y agoFor the private room loyalty program, you would have to meet a quota, x number of stays in order to make yourself worthwhile to the hotel for them to forego selling you to voyeurs.
- jakelazaroff 7y agoYou don’t have to extrapolate far to get into dystopian territory. “Get 50% off your rent if you agree to be live-streamed all the time!” This is also the business model that powers most of the web. “Let us spy on you and get our service for free!” Then brands pop up offering privacy for a price, and the result is that only rich people get to live their lives unsurveilled. This hotel example seems harmless because it’s mostly a gimmick, but we need to stop this train in its tracks. Privacy should be a human right.
- csydas 7y agoI'm mixed on this because while I 100% agree with you, I also don't really think that it will take off beyond a few novelty places where the Hotel + rooms are specifically designed to accommodate an entertaining stream. Think specific amenities meant to encourage silliness, items in the room for entertainment value that a regular hotel wouldn't use, product placement, and so on. The number of non-tech people who still bother with a strip of tape over their laptop's webcam is encouraging enough for me to believe that likely a hotel experience like this really will never grow beyond a curiosity for a select group of people who wouldn't mind such an experience, and I think that our paranoia over physical privacy likely will keep this pretty constrained.
- viraptor 7y agoEven more - there's bound to be someone testing the boundaries. This is one example. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jennifer_Ringley https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jennifer_Ringley was another one. Someone has to either express/define or demonstrate what's extreme for the rest to have an opinion on what's ok. It will be an issue if this idea becomes a norm. But it's normal that it's an extreme novelty.
- greggman2 7y agoI don't understand. If I live stream my life on twitch or youtube or my own servers how is that different? Youtube pays, twitch pays, so effectively they'd be paying me to live stream my life. But it's my choice to do it. Are you saying it should be illegal to post live video of yourself for money?
- noobermin 7y agoTbh I'm surprised an American didn't think of it first. I guess Big Brother was the first and now they're just letting every join Big Brother.
- wyxuan 7y agoThis isn't much unlike livestreaming on Twitch. It's a novelty and if you want to do it you want. People livestream themselves doing weird stuff all the time.
- jacquesm 7y ago> It's a novelty No it isn't. That stuff has been done since the mid 90's.
- saagarjha 7y agoI’m curious if he actually plans to make the money back through advertising…
- JDiculous 7y agoGiven that his hotel is now featured in a CNN article, I'd imagine it's already paid off.
- arkades 7y agoYou can’t make up in volume what you’re losing in margins.
- JDiculous 7y agoThe $1/night room is just a single room in their hotel, and the room that had been the least popular.
- jfoster 7y agoThat's correct, but not applicable to this case. You can't make up in volume what you're losing in margins for the same product. In this case there are two products: 1. Hotel room (100Y, loss margin) x 1 2. Live stream (whatever CPM he can get on YouTube) x many It still seems like it would be a struggle to make this profitable though. How many viewing hours would be needed per day? Most of the time it's going to be an empty room or have the light off. The rest of the time probably not much of interest is going on. If he's savvy, he's not really intending to make it up with ads or perhaps even keep this room deal. It's a promotion that takes the ryokan from "just another place to stay" to at least having some notability. Not sure it actually makes more people stay there, but perhaps it's worth a shot.
- subroutine 7y agoHe should charge guests and extra $1 to livestream their stay (on top of the regular price). Some people like to voyeur; others like to be on camera. Charging to be seen makes it seem less creepy (than - "normal price $10... but only $1 if people can watch you"), and engenders the idea of scarcity (for $1 you can be featured on a popular livestream). I see wannabe 'influencers' seeking out such an opportunity.
- JDiculous 7y agoPerhaps if the channel got popular enough then that might make sense, but at this stage I think that would be a terrible move. Charging extra to be livestreamed changes the whole dynamic from "cheapest hotel ever, with one odd condition" to "what kind of idiot pays extra money for a hotel room to be livestreamed?" $1 hotel is cool and something you want to share with your friends and stay in for the experience. Having to pay extra money on top of the room fare for the "privilege" of being livestreamed does not sound attractive and would probably generate outrage (though to be fair, outrage is still attention). Also as a viewer, I'd be less interested in watching people so desperate for attention that they're willing to pay extra money to be livestreamed - I'd assume they're one of those "wannabe influencers".
- subroutine 7y agoMaybe, maybe not, opinions vary If staying in a cheap hotel was cool, why don't I ever hear people bragging about the low budget roadside motel they stayed in? Travelers who randomly wander in might submit to being livestreamed, if presented that option. But people who go there, specifically, are doing so for the unique experience of being livestreamed", not for the experience of paying $1. Again, just an opinion. Also, which seems like it would generate more outrage... (1) A hotel where people can pay to be livestreamed on youtube. (2) A hotel for people who don't actually want to be filmed in the privacy of their hotel room, but can't afford the room otherwise. But you are right, it shouldn't cost extra. It should be a free experience (with the option to have it promoted somehow - for a small fee ;)
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- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- droithomme 7y ago> So far, four guests have taken him up on the offer So, it's not exactly a popular option.
- nayuki 7y agoCovered by a different news source a week earlier, offering different details and photos: https://soranews24.com/2019/11/13/japans-cheapest-hotel-charges-just-130-yen-us1-20-for-a-room-with-a-huge-no-privacy-catch/ https://soranews24.com/2019/11/13/japans-cheapest-hotel-char...
- redis_mlc 7y ago> you have to livestream your stay Oh, just like airbnb, except you pay $25+/nite and you're not told you're being livestreamed.
- samstave 7y agoMinus the shootings, rape and murder though. 1, 2, 3, 4.... among many. 1. https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2019-11-03/airbnb-says-its-banning-party-houses-after-deadly-halloween-shooting-in-orinda https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2019-11-03/airbnb-s... 2. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/02/travel/airbnb-lawsuit-host-sexual-assault.html https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/02/travel/airbnb-lawsuit-hos... 3. https://www.sacbee.com/news/nation-world/world/article181935356.html https://www.sacbee.com/news/nation-world/world/article181935... 4. https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2018/12/22/Family-of-woman-slain-in-Costa-Rica-sues-Airbnb-resort-owners/8081545501857/ https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2018/12/22/Family-of-woman-s...
- Razengan 7y agoWas there an Airbnb case like that?
- fold_right 7y agoYeah: https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/05/europe/ireland-airbnb-hidden-camera-scli-intl/index.html https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/05/europe/ireland-airbnb-hidden-...
- thegeekpirate 7y agoFunny, I just watched "We Live in Public" (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0498329/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0498329/) the other day, where Pseudo was giving people free _everything_ (room/food/drugs/shooting range/etc.), but their entire lives had to be recorded (one hundred people were living in this place together). Absolute insanity, and I just found an interview with the director as well, Ondi Timoner (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSTLRgyt7pU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSTLRgyt7pU).
- flippyhead 7y agoThat movie is really interesting, also because of the Dotcom-era history it includes too that I never really knew about.
- walrus01 7y agoJennycam. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jennifer_Ringley https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jennifer_Ringley
- gaspoweredcat 7y agoah the 90s were a strange time for the internet (if memory serves this popped up in about 97-98)
- harryh 7y agoIf you enjoyed that, check out Ondi Timoner's other amazing documentary: Dig! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dig https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dig!
- zyang 7y agoFacebook, IRL.
- tus88 7y agoHmmm.
- mwilcox 7y agoSo it's facebook
- Iv 7y agoI don't see the business plan there. $1 a night won't pay the rent. Not even the costs that an owner has to pay. Looks like a stunt for something else.
- zeofig 7y ago1. Silly idea 2. Lose money but generate hype 3. ??? 4. Profit Similar business model to Uber, differing somewhat in the details
- freyr 7y agoHe hopes to make money from the livestream, not from the people staying at the hotel. It's right there in the article.
- jacobwilliamroy 7y agoThey're not customers. They're products. He'll sell 'em to voyeurs or sell the voyeurs to advertisers, or both.
- gaspoweredcat 7y agoi imagine its one room in a certain hotel, the rest will be normal, this is just a way of getting advertising cheaply as its gotten them on countless worldwide news sites
- Animats 7y agoAnyone remember Jennicam?
- thatswrong0 7y agoDepending on the terms, I would probably subject myself to it so I could drum up interest in the art project I’m working on (as I would be working on it live). This kind of seems like a win-win (assuming the hotel actually comes out ahead somehow.. which doesn’t seem possible)
- antpls 7y agoPeople are saying it's like Facebook IRL, but it's not. Facebook used to let you post your private life online as much as possible and hide to you all the advertisement business. This, in contrary, is very open about its business model and you are warned upfront. It also means everyone on internet can make sure the management of the hotel is done right. You are guaranteed that the room has been cleaned and no one can steal your things. This is an example of how recording everything can lead to reducing risks for both the host and the guests. (I'm not saying we should start recording everything everytime)
- afroboy 7y agoIf i would ask to shut down the camera when doing private stuffs that would be ok.
- asdfasgasdgasdg 7y agoThe article specifically mentions that sex acts are prohibited if you take the owner up on the offer. This is presumably to satisfy Japan's strict sex censorship laws.
- Spoppys 7y agoOr it's a buffet for sexual predators.
- samstave 7y agoDo you have to be in the room for a certain number of hours and stay up until a certain time of night. Im sure me livestreaming what i fo in a hotel would be super boring. Reading and then falling asleep to a documentary or podcast.
- jacobwilliamroy 7y agoSome folks are so lonely, that watching some stranger watch tv can be a nice distraction.
- gaspoweredcat 7y agoim actually in japan now and my budget is running low but when you can snag a guest house for like £5-6 a night its probably not worth being on the net, my budget isnt that low
- gt2 7y agoMind saying where that is found?
- jacquesm 7y agoThat's pretty cheap of them. In Toronto there was a very large building where gay people would stay rent free and get paid if they live-streamed their lives. This was in '97.
- daruton 7y agoWhy people are so interested in follow our private life?
- thrownaway954 7y agoCause some people feel that if they can pick apart someone else's life, it makes their own look less pathetic. It's like guy weighting 300lbs calling the 350lber fat. All these people want to do is watch until they can find something to shame the other person. Society is better off without any of these people. Unfortunately 99% who probably agree with my statement watch reality TV which is no different than what this hotel is doing.
- gorgoiler 7y agoIf you consider this to be exploiting the consumer then this is a good example for the textbooks of how, in a free market, there has to be some regulation to prevent exploitation of those at the edges of society. It’s exactly the same argument for laws against the most vulnerable types of sex work, or selling body organs donated by the living. Without those laws, those who are most desperate will be able to act in desperation, to someone else’s benefit, with society doing nothing to stand in the way. It’s probably time ad-tech was re calibrated on this spectrum before we race to the exploitative-bottom there as well, and build a shopping mall that we don’t want on the open common land that we do.
- sneak 7y agoIt’s not exploitation if adults, without coercion, agree to it of their own free will. It’s no one’s place to tell them what they aren’t allowed to do with their bodies or their lives (provided it’s not harming anyone else), simply because you wouldn’t make the same choice or don’t agree with it. This is what self-ownership is about. To try to control others in this way is deeply immoral.
- acollins1331 7y agoSorry to inform you but the world isnt as simple as your dictionary definition of exploitation.
- nickthemagicman 7y agoWow you seriously think that someone selling their kidney to feed their kids is done with their own free will?
- leetcrew 7y ago"free will" is sort of a red herring in this situation. the choice should probably be considered to be made under duress, because the person's children are starving. but you don't really help the person by preventing the sale; the family is still starving. if you really don't want people selling kidneys, you need to give them enough food to eat.
- heyalexej 7y agoReminds me of Big Sister [1], a brothel where customers could use the women's services for free, subsidized by paying Internet viewers, DVD sales & such. 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Sister_(brothel) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Sister_(brothel)
- jaclaz 7y agoYep, but there the business model is (was) clear, there is no doubt that there is a (vast and lucrative) market for voyeurs and (streaming) porn, what is missing here is the lack (I presume) of a market for people wanting to see strangers sleep. Maybe there is a subset of feticism about it, but are the numbers big enough?
- notahacker 7y agotbh his ordinary, struggling budget hotel has given a handful of guests a discount, and in return he's got worldwide press coverage. I suspect that's the bit that matters more than the sustainability of the model.
- jaclaz 7y agoYep, but if he had an online shop, I would understand that, I simply (maybe it is just me) cannot see how/why anyone (being in Fukuoka) would choose that hotel over the competitors (paying the "full" rate I mean) so - maybe - he is increasing the number of people willing to stay there (watched) for 1 $ per night, i.e. something on which the hotel will loose money.
- maest 7y agoThe article ending makes me feel very icky for some reason: > So, besides the opportunity to have thousands of strangers watch your REM cycle on the internet, what's the incentive to head to Fukuoka? Plenty -- so much that CNN Travel named Fukuoka one of its must-visit destinations for 2019. The pretty seaside city is known for its incredible food. In addition to local, freshly-caught seafood, Fukuoka is also the birthplace of the popular Ichiran chain, home of yummy pork tonkotsu ramen. Also, the acclaimed Fukuoka Art Museum reopened in early 2019 following three years of renovations.
- msla 7y agoSo... what are Japan's laws regarding child pornography? If a family with a young kid stays, and the young kid ends up running around naked, who goes to prison?
- umanwizard 7y agoI don’t know about Japan, but FWIW, that would be perfectly legal in the US and nobody would go to prison. Simple nudity is not inherently sexual or pornographic.
- benawad 7y agoAll it takes is one person doing something against YouTube's terms of service and his account will get banned.