How long does it take the “Skip” button to pop up? China has come up with a new way to stop people from taking too much toilet paper at public bathrooms…by making them watch ads before they get it. Videos have gone viral showing smart toilet paper dispensers that require people to scan a QR code with their phone, watch a short ad, and then receive a small strip of toilet paper. Users can either watch the ad or pay about 7 cents for each strip of paper they need.
This is the latest in China's efforts to reduce toilet paper waste at tourist spots since the country's tourism boom began. In 2017, they tried facial scanners that only gave one 60-centimeter strip per person every nine minutes. Then in 2019, they added AI technology to limit dispensing to once every 10 minutes per user. The new ad-based system raises questions about what happens if someone doesn't have their phone or their battery dies when they need to use the bathroom.