SAN DIEGO • Film-maker Oliver Stone warned on Thursday that Pokemon Go was part of a march towards "totalitarianism" as the start of San Diego Comic-Con saw film-makers expound on their political viewpoints.

During a panel discussion for his new movie, Snowden - about National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden's leak of United States government secrets in 2013 - he said the Pokemon Go app was part of a larger culture of "surveillance capitalism".

"It's the fastest-growing business ever and they have invested huge amounts of money into what surveillance is, which is data-mining.

"They're data-mining every person in this room for information as to what you're buying, what it is you like and, above all, your behaviour."

The location-based augmented reality game has been criticised for requesting users' Google-browsing history and e-mail.

Stone, 69, said the app "kicks into" the surveillance culture and was "everywhere".

"It's what some people call surveillance capitalism. It's the newest stage. You'll see a new form of a robot society, where they will know how you want to behave and they will make the mock-up that matches how you behave and feed you. It's what they call totalitarianism."

Snowden opens in the US on Sept 16.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE