GPS will pinpoint Coke prize winners

Here is a spooky idea. How about a contest where a major corporation puts a GPS in it's packaging so that it's representatives can track you down and give you prizes. Well wait no longer, The Indianapolis Star is reporting that Coke is going to be doing just that this summer, and that they are testing the program in Canada and Australia.

Thrill Seeker uses satellite tracking to locate winners. The prizes are Peugeot cars and $10,000. Summertime prizes are common in the soft-drink world, given that they help stir interest during an important selling season. This year's summer promotion from Pepsi, for example, touted a potential prize of $1 billion. (It wasn't won, by the way.) The oddity of Coke's promotion revolves around how winners will get their prizes. The cans used will be equipped with Global Positioning System transponders.

While, on the surface, this sounds like a neat idea. I think there are some potential privacy issues. For example, can Coke track the package before it's opened? One would assume that is the case because they want to be able to ambush a winner with their prize. Will Coke be chasing a winner down the street in a prize car? That could make for good L.A. television.