You had me right up until the price tag. I was even going to be okay with the advertising BS. But you can't make us purchase this, and for such a high price, with almost no direct benefit to the driver, THEN force us to advertise something we don't necessarily agree with/believe in.

Searching for the consumer upside here: $700 per plate, easy to steal, non-recyclable, self battery powered so another thing to maintain. Soon the vehicle manufactures will be designing this feature into the car anyway, so just wait a few more years.

So I should pay $7 a month to the state can make even more money from advertisement!? I should pay so that the government can use my car for its own purpose? Who think of this things?

Yeah hack into the cars electronics and change the numbers to one that just commited a crime (like a bank robbery, etc) and watch the cops arrest the wrong person--and get someone killed probably. Bad bad bad bad idea.

They are going to save on money by moving to a $700 plate that has a $7/month service fee? Moving reliable $4 license plates to a $700 proprietary one that needs batteries and runs ads is such a California thing to do. Can I get a scrolling text on mine that says I'm a vegan who rescued my pet from a shelter?

So how long until the backdoors and zero-day exploits are published? Seems like a solution in search of a bunch of people with more money than sense.
At least they still require on real plate.

As long as it is not mandated but only as an option, I think that is neat. If it was mandated (perhaps eventually), it could make California even more expensive to live in.

If the state can track a stolen car, then they can track YOU. For THIS, I supposed to pay? Oh, hell no.

And now folks you know why people in California are leaving the state at a record pace! And now you also know why a big red wave just passed over California elections last night. How crazy do you have to be not to understand people would rather leave the state than to pay for these stupid ideas that will be forced on the people eventually. I thought these people on the west coast loved their environment. Can you imagine how many lithium batteries it will take to power all these plates? Can you imagine how dirty these plates are to produce, the amount to energy it will take? Who notices license plates anyway? For that kind of money I can mount a 55" flat screen on the side of my car!

Sounds like the $7/month is for the onStar like features (geo fence, stolen car tracking, etc.)
BUT $700 to buy for something that is going to need ongoing service, like batteries and cover lens?? So who's going to cover the cost when it gets smashed by vandals or random road debris?
Either this should be a fee to use (like vanity plates) and stays property of the state, or $700 is a one time fee that covers purchase and all future repairs/updates/replacements.