Pizza Hut's Pizza-Ordering Tattoo Makes No Sense

As the pizza delivery wars heat up, Pizza Hut has unveiled a new, confusing, and entirely unnecessary way to order a pie: via temporary tattoo. And it knows where you live.

Pizza Hut UK today announced it has created the world’s first pizza ordering tattoo. Though the brand says the innovation will allow diners to order pizza “instantly,” there are certainly more steps involved than, say, ordering via Facebook message.

Like any temporary tattoo, users simply peel off the plastic back of the graphic, dampen some skin, and press it against the damp, flat skin surface. Once the tattoo is applied, users can use a smart phone to hover over the tattoo, then select between two options to place their pizza order.

There’s a Big Brother aspect, too. The tattoos come pre-programmed with technology that uses a combination of Near Field Communication (NFC), QR, and the GPS module in the user’s phone.

In other words: These tattoos know where you live. And what kind of pizza you like. So once the tattoo is scanned, Pizza Hut knows exactly what kind of pie to prepare, and where to deliver it.

The biggest pizza chains in the world have been in a virtual race against time to unveil newer, tech-focused, often ridiculous ways to order a pie. Domino’s has largely been winning the war, allowing diners to order pizza via emoji, Siri, Amazon Echo and Samsung Smart TV, or its “zero clicks” ordering app. Domino’s even recently unveiled unmanned pizza robots that can hold up to 10 pizzas and have a 20-mile delivery radius.

Domino’s foray into tech might sound gimmicky, but so far, it’s working. In fact, in recent months, Domino’s seems to to have taken a hefty slice of the delivery pie from its rival Pizza Hut. While Pizza Hut recently reported a two percent sales decline over recent months, Domino’s sales have jumped some 13 percent over the past year.

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