Brother in law refuses to use medallion app

[marypat01]

On 3/14/2023 at 7:09 PM, wowzz said:

Not sure why you say that.  

99.9% of passengers use the Medallion, so he will stand out like a sore thumb !

Hmm, I really don't think that 99.99% of that 99.9% gives a care, actually.

 

[marypat01]

9 hours ago, MissP22 said:

Not that we want to but I'm not sure if it's even possible to remove the locate feature for cabin mates?

They potentially could, if they have separate Boarding Numbers.

 

[marypat01]

On 3/15/2023 at 11:20 AM, cruzsnooze said:

It how long you spent in the bathroom!

LOL - not quite that accurate, although, perhaps it if were the bathroom away from your cabin...

 

[jagoffee]

15 hours ago, julie3fan said:

 

Don't both parties have to agree for tracking to be enabled?  Seems short sighted to allow that and then stray!

Yes, as I recall.  But other people recall it differently.  Perhaps I am confusing messaging and location tracking.  Messaging was worthless with an IPhone, because there was no notifications.

Edited March 16, 2023 by jagoffee

[BamaVol]

2 hours ago, jagoffee said:

Yes, as I recall.  But other people recall it differently.  Perhaps I am confusing messaging and location tracking.  Messaging was worthless with an IPhone, because there was no notifications.

I may be mistaken, but we used WhatsApp on our iPhones and I’m pretty sure there were notifications.

[caribill]

2 hours ago, jagoffee said:

Yes, as I recall.  But other people recall it differently.  Perhaps I am confusing messaging and location tracking.  Messaging was worthless with an IPhone, because there was no notifications.

 

Messaging: Send/receive messages with other passengers

 

Location tracking: Tells Princess system where your Medallion currently is located if on the ship. Normally it is with you. This allows you to use screens around the ship to locate someone else in your group by showing where their Medallion currently is. For example,using a screen near the elevators near the deck 6 dining room and see that the person you are looking for is (some possibilities) in the dining room, in the front row of the Princess Theater, in their cabin, in a rest room on deck 5, or wherever they might be on the ship.

 

 

[marypat01]

2 hours ago, jagoffee said:

Yes, as I recall.  But other people recall it differently.  Perhaps I am confusing messaging and location tracking.  Messaging was worthless with an IPhone, because there was no notifications.

You need to put the other's Boarding Number into the app, for tracking purposes.

 

[jagoffee]

2 hours ago, BamaVol said:

I may be mistaken, but we used WhatsApp on our iPhones and I’m pretty sure there were notifications.

Doesn’t the WhatsApp require you to be logged into the Internet?

2 hours ago, caribill said:

 

Messaging: Send/receive messages with other passengers

 

Location tracking: Tells Princess system where your Medallion currently is located if on the ship. Normally it is with you. This allows you to use screens around the ship to locate someone else in your group by showing where their Medallion currently is. For example,using a screen near the elevators near the deck 6 dining room and see that the person you are looking for is (some possibilities) in the dining room, in the front row of the Princess Theater, in their cabin, in a rest room on deck 5, or wherever they might be on the ship.

 

 

Yes, I know.  The messaging built into the Princess AP did not provide you a notification when you received a message. (With an IPhone) One had to call it up and check it to see if you had a message.
 I really like the functionality of the location tracking.  It was very useful for our party. The feature not only allowed Princess to know your location, but you could find members of your party (after they approved the feature for you) and find directions to any location.  Like a Navigation system. 

2 hours ago, marypat01 said:

You need to put the other's Boarding Number into the app, for tracking purposes.

 

This is what I remember, but several others are saying that cruisers staying in the same cabin were automatically enabled in the location tracking.  There were four in our party, so I may have been confused. 

[Lady Meer]

23 hours ago, MissP22 said:

Not that we want to but I'm not sure if it's even possible to remove the locate feature for cabin mates?

We’ve never had this feature and it hasn’t been on automatically. When we travel with our daughter and grandson, DH links the 3 of them but not me. I want some peace and quiet…😁.

[MissP22]

6 hours ago, jagoffee said:

Doesn’t the WhatsApp require you to be logged into the Internet?

 

Yes, it requires an internet or intranet connection but it gives an audible alert when receiving a call, video call or text as well. 

The only problem we had with the app is that it seemed to amplify all the background noise when using the phone option. I never had it happen at home for some reason and didn't solve the problem on the ship. We just lived with it, but I suppose there must been an adjustment somewhere. 

[jagoffee]

17 hours ago, MissP22 said:

Yes, it requires an internet or intranet connection but it gives an audible alert when receiving a call, video call or text as well. 

The only problem we had with the app is that it seemed to amplify all the background noise when using the phone option. I never had it happen at home for some reason and didn't solve the problem on the ship. We just lived with it, but I suppose there must been an adjustment somewhere. 

Do you have an Android based phone?

[MissP22]

7 hours ago, jagoffee said:

Do you have an Android based phone?

Yes. A Galaxy S20.

[Buckeye10640]

On 3/12/2023 at 6:28 PM, roadster08 said:

His concerns are not without some merit.

 

Using the medallion with GPS and charge tracking, Princess knows a lot about us. They know when we are in our cabin, for how long, and where we go when we leave the cabin. They know where we get our food and drink and how long it is between drinks and meals and snacks. 

 

It's tracking all our personal data about our entire cruise and yes, that data, combined with all the precruise data they collect about us, can be used to make decisions about future cruises with demographics on who their high margin customers are. 

 

 

I guess I dont understand this...I dont care if they know how much time I spend in my room or in the Piazza or at the pool. And technically, they track my food and drink and other charges whether I use my medallion or not as every charge is recorded to go against my on board account.  I personally think its a touch of paranoia, but of course everyone can make their own decisions. 

[Stosh68]

On 3/12/2023 at 4:28 PM, roadster08 said:

His concerns are not without some merit.

 

Using the medallion with GPS and charge tracking, Princess knows a lot about us. They know when we are in our cabin, for how long, and where we go when we leave the cabin. They know where we get our food and drink and how long it is between drinks and meals and snacks. 

 

It's tracking all our personal data about our entire cruise and yes, that data, combined with all the precruise data they collect about us, can be used to make decisions about future cruises with demographics on who their high margin customers are. 

 

 

 

They are meritless.

 

Do you think all the other cruise line's ignore this information and willingly give Princess a competitive advantage?  Carnival Corporation owns how many different cruise lines?  But they choose to only collect "additional" info on Princess?

 

If you believe that, you likely already own several bridges and oceanfront properties in Arizona.

 

Even with a cruise card, how do you think they know which cards to allow to open which cabin doors?  Every single cabin door is electronically connected to the ship's computers, and they know every time the door is opened and closed.   They know how long you've been in your room.

 

Medallion or not, they know where you eat and what time.  That's what dinner reservations are for.  Do you think they keep them on index cards?  No, they are computerized.  If you never have a dinner reservation, then they know you only eat at the buffet and like the worst food on the ship.  If you order room service...

 

Medallion or not, when you give somebody your cabin # to charge drinks because you have the drink package, they record what you ordered and what time.

 

Lastly, if you have Wifi on the ship, the ship knows what Wifi access point you are connected to, and as you move around the ship, and connect to different access points, they know where you've been, how long you've been there.  So if you connect to the Wifi access point in the buffet area...well, they know where you eat, and for how long, no medallion required.

 

 

 

 

[wowzz]

6 hours ago, Stosh68 said:

 

They are meritless.

 

Do you think all the other cruise line's ignore this information and willingly give Princess a competitive advantage?  Carnival Corporation owns how many different cruise lines?  But they choose to only collect "additional" info on Princess?

 

If you believe that, you likely already own several bridges and oceanfront properties in Arizona.

 

Even with a cruise card, how do you think they know which cards to allow to open which cabin doors?  Every single cabin door is electronically connected to the ship's computers, and they know every time the door is opened and closed.   They know how long you've been in your room.

 

Medallion or not, they know where you eat and what time.  That's what dinner reservations are for.  Do you think they keep them on index cards?  No, they are computerized.  If you never have a dinner reservation, then they know you only eat at the buffet and like the worst food on the ship.  If you order room service...

 

Medallion or not, when you give somebody your cabin # to charge drinks because you have the drink package, they record what you ordered and what time.

 

Lastly, if you have Wifi on the ship, the ship knows what Wifi access point you are connected to, and as you move around the ship, and connect to different access points, they know where you've been, how long you've been there.  So if you connect to the Wifi access point in the buffet area...well, they know where you eat, and for how long, no medallion required.

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately your logical response will have no impact at all on the paranoid !

[marypat01]

On 3/16/2023 at 10:41 PM, jagoffee said:

 Like a Navigation system. 

This is what I remember, but several others are saying that cruisers staying in the same cabin were automatically enabled in the location tracking.  There were four in our party, so I may have been confused. 

My wife and I are in the same cabin, but we have different boarding numbers.  I had to add her.  It might be the part where they ask for other people you want to track.  If you all have the same booking numbers, then you may all, automatically, be included.

[marypat01]

6 hours ago, Stosh68 said:

Medallion or not, they know where you eat and what time.  That's what dinner reservations are for.  Do you think they keep them on index cards?  No, they are computerized.  If you never have a dinner reservation, then they know you only eat at the buffet and like the worst food on the ship.  If you order room service...

I recently spent 30 days on the Caribbean P. and 30 days on the Emerald.  Every time we went to the MDR, they asked us our cabin number, or rather, scanned one of out medallions.

[cr8tiv1]

Maybe someone can remember, if I trigger their memory.  It's been several months since I last cruised....and never had a need to turn off my location finder.

 

But I "thought" each person could go into their app and turn off location finder.  It is default to on with cabin mate.  

[Guest ldtr]

On 3/15/2023 at 8:20 AM, cruzsnooze said:

It's not so much the tracking as harvesting of information to bombard you with ads  and ways to entice you spend more money.  They only track you on camera if something warrants it, they aren't collecting information. The medallion gives them every moment such as how long you were in a shop, if you went to a show, how long you spent in the bathroom! It's like cookies on your computer tracking you for extra revenue. 

  I started using the medallion for unlocking my cabin door but keep it in an RFID sleeve in my pocket. I do not carry my cell with me on board, it stays in the safe. I don't use their app either, I use their web version to get ocean ready.

So you expect Princess is going to send you ads on bath room products.

 

To put it simply most of the potential things people tend to worry about are of absolutely no value to the cruise line and as a result they do not collect nor do they have any desire to collect.

 

Most of the information of interest to the cruise line is already available to them with or with out a medallion.  Your contact information, your age, the city and state where you live, the room you booked and what you paid for it, all of the excursions and other items you purchased on board ship, if you purchased a package or not. If you eat in the dining room, if you order room service.  All of that they already have.

 

Any other information other than potential emergency information such as if you are on board ship and where you are if someone is trying to find you (for example if the ship shows you as still being on shore), would more related to numbers of people not individuals.  They can use the information to see how many people are in the a given venue at a specific point in time.  That provides them with information to improve operations.  For example how many people are in the theater in 15 minute intervals  to see how popular a performer might be.  Or tracking crowds in Ldio to look at the pattern for passenger loads during meal times.  But this information is of interest only an a total number, not which individuals where there.

 

If they did a continuous run of data on every passenger and there location all of the time, the data storage would be immense, the amount of internal bandwidth to collect and transfer that information would be immense.  The cost to collect and store all of that data would be huge, fair outweighing any value that the data might have.  So while someone could potentially use the system to track someone, unless security is trying to find them, there is not reason or value for them to do so.

Edited March 19, 2023 by ldtr

[Guest ldtr]

On 3/16/2023 at 1:22 AM, caribill said:

 

People in the same cabin are automatically allowed to use the locate person function for each other.

The default is for anyone else in the same cabin to be listed as part of your party and the default is for tracking to be enabled.  However, it can be turned off, even for them.  Unfortunately the menu where you do that is not available off ship.  Next month when I am next on board I will post the procedure. 

 

You cannot turn off the ability of the ships personnel  to find you, but you can set it such that other passengers cannot access that information.

Edited March 19, 2023 by ldtr

[cr8tiv1]

1 hour ago, ldtr said:

The default is for anyone else in the same cabin to be listed as part of your party and the default is for tracking to be enabled.  However, it can be turned off, even for them.  Unfortunately the menu where you do that is not available off ship.  Next month when I am next on board I will post the procedure. 

 

You cannot turn off the ability of the ships personnel  to find you, but you can set it such that other passengers cannot access that information.

 

I knew I hadn't lost my mind completely.  Thank you.

[caribill]

12 hours ago, Stosh68 said:

Do you think all the other cruise line's ignore this information and willingly give Princess a competitive advantage?  Carnival Corporation owns how many different cruise lines?  But they choose to only collect "additional" info on Princess?

 

CCL Corp.'s plan is to fully prove the Medallion concept on Princess and then add it to its other brands.

 

I wonder if the newest ships for the other brands are having the hardware for the Medallion technology installed as part of the ships' construction.

 

12 hours ago, Stosh68 said:

 

Even with a cruise card, how do you think they know which cards to allow to open which cabin doors?  Every single cabin door is electronically connected to the ship's computers, and they know every time the door is opened and closed.   They know how long you've been in your room.

 

They have no idea without the Medallion how long anyone is in a room. They may have known a door was opened, but could not know who, if anyone, actually entered or left the room.

 

 

12 hours ago, Stosh68 said:

Medallion or not, they know where you eat and what time.  That's what dinner reservations are for.  Do you think they keep them on index cards?  No, they are computerized.  If you never have a dinner reservation, then they know you only eat at the buffet and like the worst food on the ship.  If you order room service...

 

The computer may have known what time you had a reservation there, but it did not know if you actually showed up and ate there. And you did not need a reservation to show up for Anytime dining. They also did not know if you ate in the buffet or got food from the IC, Pizza restaurant, Pizza counter on Lido deck, hamburger grill, or ice cream counter.

 

12 hours ago, Stosh68 said:

Medallion or not, when you give somebody your cabin # to charge drinks because you have the drink package, they record what you ordered and what time.

 

But as many posts on Cruise Critic have said, they did not know where you ordered the drink. The place listed on the onboard statements was where the waiter's orders were turned in, not where the order was taken which was often in a very different part of the ship.

 

I am not saying that Princess does or does not make any use of the information that can be gathered with the introduction of the Medallion, just that much more detailed information is now available to be collected.

 

[caribill]

6 hours ago, marypat01 said:

I recently spent 30 days on the Caribbean P. and 30 days on the Emerald.  Every time we went to the MDR, they asked us our cabin number, or rather, scanned one of our medallions.

 

Same when we had Club Class dining on a recent cruise. Even with our picture and cabin info appearing on their screen when we showed up, they still asked us to record our presence by having one of our Medallions scanned just like when embarking/disembarking the ship.

 

A purchase in a ship's boutique also required the scanning of a Medallion.

[cr8tiv1]

11 minutes ago, caribill said:

 

Same when we had Club Class dining on a recent cruise. Even with our picture and cabin info appearing on their screen when we showed up, they still asked us to record our presence by having one of our Medallions scanned just like when embarking/disembarking the ship.

 

A purchase in a ship's boutique also required the scanning of a Medallion.

My experience in Club Class was different. After “getting to know me”, I was never asked for my medallion.  I had done 5 cruises on the Grand.  There was always someone that knew me from a previous cruise.  Same with breakfast at the Crown Grill.
 

There was once they used the app to track me down.  “My” table wasn’t ready, so I went to Vines….to sit….and have a glass of wine while waiting.  Jennifer hunted me down to escort me up to dinner.  

[wowzz]

40 minutes ago, caribill said:

 

Same when we had Club Class dining on a recent cruise. Even with our picture and cabin info appearing on their screen when we showed up, they still asked us to record our presence by having one of our Medallions scanned just like when embarking/disembarking the ship.

 

A purchase in a ship's boutique also required the scanning of a Medallion.

We were never asked for our Medallion after our first visit to the Club dining room.