Anti-theft tapes offer

Press, 29 December 1986, Page 3

Anti-theft tapes offer

PA Wellington Cassette tapes which bombard consumers with subliminal anti-shoplifting messages are being offered to retailers. The tapes, which can be played in conjunction with in-store background music, are being brought into the country by a Tauranga woman, Ms Grace Klaassen. Her source is Midwest Research Australia, a South Australian agent for an American company which produces a number of subliminal motivational and anti-smoking tapes. The tapes work by autosuggestion, repeating messages such as: “I do not steal,” over and over at a frequency not audible to shoppers. Interest in the tapes from Auckland retailers has been high in recent weeks as news of their availability spread from Wellington.

The Retailers’ Federation is not aware of any

members using the tapes yet, but it knows they have been used in Australia for some time. A Wellington security consultant, Mr Trevor Morley, said he heard subliminal anti-shoplifting tapes as far back as 1983 when he visited Australia as part of a study trip on security systems. “From what I’ve read, what I’ve seen and heard, they appear to work,” he said. “You can’t consciously hear them. They’re played through a normal public address system but they’re at a sub-audible frequency.” He said they have been used overseas for some time but have not been available in New Zealand. He has told clients of the tapes’ availability through Ms Klaassen, but doubts that , any tapes had reached New Zealand yet. The Retailers’ Federation’s legal expert, Mr Richard Hall, doubted that’X 1 there were laws

against using the tapes. But if subliminal tapes were used to promote spending or advertising certain products then they could breach professional ethics codes. The Secretary for Consumers Affairs, Ms Elizabeth Sewell, was also concerned about the moral implications. The Ministry had no information on the tapes, however, and had not received complaints. Mr Morley saw no ethical problems with using the tapes as a theft deterrent. Background music distributors have emphasised they do not use subliminal messages in the tapes used in supermarkets or shopping malls. Musak Systems in Auckland received a number of inquiries last week from retailers wanting subliminal tapes, but the company said it,, has nothing to do with