Google Pushing to Block Laws Banning Wearable Displays

Google Inc. is lobbying state legislators to scrap plans to outlaw the use of displays such as Google Glass while driving, Reuters reports.

The $1,500 Google Glass mounts on the corner of an eyeglass frame. The wearable head-up display enables the user to read e-mails, view time and maps, record images and get information from the Internet.

At least eight states are considering measures that would ban such devices as dangerous distractions for drivers. Reuters says Google lobbyists have so far visited lawmakers in Delaware, Illinois and Missouri to argue that such restrictions aren't necessary.

Those officials say Google's view is that regulating wearable displays is premature because there aren't many available, according to Reuters. But one legislator, who tells the news service that Google's display clearly is intended for broad public use, retorts, "Who are they fooling?"

Google tells Reuters that it merely wants to be a part of public policy discussions about the use of technology. The company insists that its device isn't intended to distract but to better connect people with the world around them.