Wanda Sykes has signed on to host America’s Funniest Home Video genre TV show. It won’t show clips intentionally shot with a camera or phone, though — no, it’ll show videos shot by Ring doorbells and smart home cameras. The show is called Ring Nation and is produced by MGM Television and Big Fish Entertainment. If you’re wondering what all these three have in common, it’s Amazon. The e-commerce giant owns MGM and Big Fish and bought Ring’s smart doorbell business for $1 billion in 2018.
According to Deadline , Ring Nation will show viral videos featuring neighbors saving neighbors, marriage proposals, military reunions and animals doing silly things . In other words, if you visit social networks a lot, you’re likely to see videos online unless the show also includes fresh content that may be shared by Ring owners.
Barry Poznick, president of MGM Alternative Television and Orion Television, said: “From the incredible, to the hilarious and uplifting must-see viral moments from all over the country every day, Ring Country offers something for everyone watching at home.”
Amazon’s desire to make videos from its smart doorbells a source of fun home TVs also feels a bit Black Mirror-esque, especially when you consider Ring’s relationship with law enforcement. Senator Edward Markey recently shared a disclosure that Amazon provided Ring videos 11 times to U.S. law enforcement without a court order or user consent.
A company spokesperson defended Ring’s actions and told us that the law empowers companies to “provide information to government entities if the company believes there is an emergency involving the danger of death or serious bodily harm to any person. … …requests immediate disclosure.” Markey tweeted of his revelation: “We cannot accept that this surveillance is inevitable.” He also cited the disclosure as an example of why lawmakers should pass “facial recognition and Biometrics Suspension Act,” which he introduced to prohibit law enforcement from using these technologies.
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