Yamaha InfoSound prototype talks to your phone as you zone out during TV commercials

Of all the things that the ol' boob tube does well, directing viewers to advertiser's websites is not one of them. In an era where most TVs are still not internet connected, Yamaha has dreamt up a canny work around: the technique, dubbed InfoSound, plays an inaudible (18 kHz or higher) signal over your TV's audio track that can be picked up by your smartphone's mic and read with a custom app. Of course, the thing is not exactly high bandwidth, but even with a range of roughly 33 feet and a rate of 80 bps, this should be fine for transmitting a URL. Just imagine! Never again will you have to choose between the Saturday afternoon Weekend at Bernie's double-header and printing out a coupon for the Jiffy Lube.