System would detect paused content on external devices and show ads on top.

A patent application from the company spotted by Lowpass describes a system for displaying ads over any device connected over HDMI, a list that could include cable boxes, game consoles, DVD or Blu-ray players, PCs, or even other video streaming devices. Roku filed for the patent in August 2023 and it was published in November 2023, though it hasn’t yet been granted.

The technology described would detect whether content was paused in multiple ways—if the video being displayed is static, if there’s no audio being played, if a pause symbol is shown anywhere on screen, or if (on a TV with HDMI-CEC enabled) a pause signal has been received from some passthrough remote control. The system would analyze the paused image and use metadata “to identify one or more objects” in the video frame, transmit that identification information to a network, and receive and display a “relevant ad” over top of whatever the paused content is.

  • NeoNachtwaechter@lemmy.worldEnglish
    0·
    1 year ago

    My TV set is like a dumb monitor: HDMI in, colorful image out, basta.

    Not even audio. And of course it does not get any internet connection. And I don’t feed it any caviar.

  • Hobbes_Dent@lemmy.worldEnglish
    0·
    1 year ago

    So we just ordered a new tv and just want the universe to know that Roku wasn’t even considered and this shit is why.

    • ilmagico@lemmy.worldEnglish
      0·
      1 year ago

      I mean, yeah sure, but are the alternatives that much better in this respect? Which alternative non-ad-ridden, privacy-respecting smart tv would you recommend (or ended up buying)? Asking for my future tv choice…

      • ReallyActuallyFrankenstein@lemmynsfw.comEnglish
        0·
        1 year ago

        We have a HiSense Android TV (most are now Google TV, but they’re essentially the same). There are ads by default, but you can install a custom launcher with no ads, so the experience is much better.

        I use Projectivity launcher and it looks nicer, has no ads, and it’s much faster and more responsive.

        As soon as I figured out how to install a custom launcher, I researched how to disable ads similarly on our Roku TVs and discovered all of the secret menus that could have disabled them, except they no longer work.

        So the Roku level of lockdown on their custom OS is much worse now versus an android-based OS.

        • ilmagico@lemmy.worldEnglish
          0·
          1 year ago

          While Google is hardly privacy-respecting and ad-free, I guess the fact it can be more easily customized is a plus, maybe I should consider it for the future. After all, that’s the same reason I stick with Android.

          Can GoogleTV be rooted like android can, preferably without resorting to hacks, like in some android phones where the bootloader is unlockable?

      • Hobbes_Dent@lemmy.worldEnglish
        0·
        1 year ago

        Samsung, but I’d rather report back when I see if it’s a mistake.

        I intend to keep using my AppleTV and hope that’s the end of it. But the Samsung was a process of elimination of Roku and LG via shitty experience with the WebOS on the work TV. If Tizen doesn’t stay out of the way then I’ll start playing router games.

  • AutoTL;DR@lemmings.worldBEnglish
    0·
    1 year ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:

    Now, the company is apparently experimenting with ways to show ads over top of even more of the things you plug into your TV.

    A patent application from the company spotted by Lowpass describes a system for displaying ads over any device connected over HDMI, a list that could include cable boxes, game consoles, DVD or Blu-ray players, PCs, or even other video streaming devices.

    This theoretical Roku TV’s internal hardware would be capable of taking the original source video feed, rendering an ad, and then combining the two into a single displayed image.

    Among the business risks disclosed on Roku’s financial filings from its 2023 fiscal year (PDF), the company says that its “future growth depends on the acceptance and growth of streaming TV advertising and advertising platforms.”

    If implemented as described, this system both gives Roku another place to put ads, and gives the company another source of user data that can be used to encourage advertisers to spend on its platforms.

    It seems as though a Roku TV that was capable of this kind of ad insertion would need more sophisticated internal hardware than most current sets currently come with—this is the same company that feuded with Google a few years back because it didn’t want to pay for more-expensive chips that could decode Google’s AV1 video codec.

    The original article contains 591 words, the summary contains 221 words. Saved 63%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!

            • sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
              0·
              1 year ago

              If only they made 60"+ monitors, I’d do the same. But since those don’t really exist, the options are:

              • prevent TV from accessing the Internet
              • get a commercial grade monitor - more expensive
              • projector - most seem to not have smart nonsense
              • pihole - may or may not work

              I’m going to try out the first, but allow certain accesses (Netflix and Disney+). If that works, I may not need to worry about the rest of the list.

    • Threeme2189@lemmy.worldEnglish
      0·
      1 year ago

      You’ve got it the other way around. Roku sell their TVs at a loss. Buy one, use it as a dumb screen and help them go bankrupt faster.

    • APassenger@lemmy.worldEnglish
      0·
      1 year ago

      Yeah… I’ve been evaluating moving to Plex or Jellyfin.

      Kinda getting done with a lot of this smart stuff. The Monopolies are flexing and I don’t enjoy it.

      • ours@lemmy.worldEnglish
        0·
        1 year ago

        Do it, it’s great. The NVidia Shield is a great client for it but is getting more and more adds on the homescreen. The are alternative loaders without the add you can put on it.

      • sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
        0·
        1 year ago

        Just do it. I ripped our DVDs and put them on my NAS with minidlna configured, and I can now stream my stuff directly to my TV through the “Photos and Videos” app. My other TV has a Raspberry Pi running Kodi, so if my next TV doesn’t support dlna, I’ll just do that.

        Screw all of these companies and their predatory practices.

    • Louisoix@lemm.eeEnglish
      0·
      1 year ago

      Is this real? I’ve never seen a native ad in windows and honestly don’t know if maybe it’s some kind of a regional thing.

      • mbfalzar@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
        0·
        1 year ago

        On fresh installs before running the debloater scripts there’s plenty of Try Candy Crush and it’s already got Office 365 pinned and accidentally clicking that takes you to the store page, and there’s some other shit I can’t remember by name

    • twack@lemmy.worldEnglish
      0·
      1 year ago

      I mean… Yes? I hate this idea and Roku will lose me as a customer over this, but yes they are specifically targeting screensavers. Idle time is ad time to these people.

      • starman2112@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
        0·
        1 year ago

        I’ll be a customer for as long as they sell these fairly high quality displays at a loss. I get a 4k TV, they lose money because they aren’t recouping the cost of producing the TV via ads, it’s win/lose in the best possible way

  • somnuz@lemm.eeEnglish
    0·
    1 year ago

    There should be a special division in all patenting offices called Burning With Fire ™