Talking CCTV is a CCTV surveillance camera that is equipped with a speaker to allow an operator to speak to the people at the CCTV-monitored site.
In Wiltshire, UK, 2003, a pilot scheme for what is now known as "Talking CCTV" was put into action; allowing operators of CCTV cameras to order offenders to stop what they were doing, ranging from ordering subjects to pick up their rubbish and put it in a bin to ordering groups of vandals to disperse. In 2005 Ray Mallon, the mayor and former senior police officer of Middlesbrough implemented "Talking CCTV" in his area.
John Reid, Home Secretary, claimed, "The new funding for Talking CCTV is aimed at the small minority who think it is acceptable to litter our streets, vandalise our communities and damage our properties", as he gave grants of £500,000 to 21 areas for the implementation of the "Talking CCTV" camera; Southwark, Barking and Dagenham, Reading, Thanet, Harlow, Norwich, Ipswich, Plymouth, Gloucester, Derby, Northampton, Mansfield, Nottingham, Coventry, Sandwell, Wirral, Blackpool, Salford, Middlesbrough, South Tyneside and Darlington.
Systems in Middlesbrough, West Bromwich, Redbridge, Manchester and Nottingham were implemented by Complus Teltronic Ltd using switching, telemetry and control room interfacing control systems from Synectic Systems Group Ltd a market leader in public area CCTV control systems.
The move has already received critics, dubbing the idea "Big Brother gone mad"
Other towns have had such cameras installed. In 2007 several of the devices were installed in Bridlington town centre, East Riding of Yorkshire.
WMT Public Address Systems for CCTV
CCTV doesn't work in its primary role which is to stop crime. It is reactive and evidence gathering and has proven to be ineffective in a number of areas. Effective CCTV can be achieved by the use of audio intervention whereby an operator is able to challenge criminals or members of the public acting in an anti-social way, to deter and prevent them from carrying out their criminal or anti-social activity.
Talking CCTV systems in the early days as shown above were primarily used to prevent littering, but weren't using the full potential of the systems as an enhancement to the CCTV cameras. These early adopted systems used conventional PA technology and were invariably hard-wired to the CCTV cameras which is expensive and in many cases impractical to implement, however new innovative technologies have emerged using IP based speakers and GSM technology which are proven to be effective and in some cases essential to comply with BS8418 the Code of Practice for the installation and remote monitoring of detector activated CCTV systems.
Wireless Mobile Telephony (WMT) PA Systems are a new form of technology used to enhance CCTV systems and provide effective audio intervention. The work on this was pioneered by Stephen Robert Pearson of Lancashire, England who successfully applied for and was granted patents for the systems which incorporate control functionality in addition to the audio announcement capabilities. The utilisation of the WMT (GSM) networks means that live announcements can be made from anywhere to anywhere in the world where there is WMT connectivity. The patents cover all forms of WMT i.e. 2G, 3G, 4G ..... xxG.
A UK company called Remvox Ltd (REMote VOice eXperience) was appointed under license to develop and manufacture products based upon this technology.
In popular culture
The Simpsons episode "To Surveil with Love" was based around the idea of communicative CCTV.