The idea of ​​Roku showing ads on HDMI inputs seems inevitable as hell

In his edition of the week Lowpass communicationJanko Roettgers reports on a Roku patent that seems to indicate the company is planning some heavy advertising strategies for those who buy a Roku TV. The core idea of ​​the patent is that ads would be displayed on these TVs whenever they are tuned to HDMI. In theory, this would allow Roku to show ads throughout your TV experience, as well as where it can’t currently do so. place. Your PS5, Xbox, Apple TV or Blu-ray player could become another canvas for the company to continue growing its already lucrative advertising business.

According to the patent, the company will use a number of different clues to determine when an HDMI source is paused; Roku TV could wait for long periods of audio silence, or simply analyze screen frames to determine when motion has stopped, and more.The patent mentions the use of Automatic content recognition (ACR) detects what you’re watching on Apple TV (or playing on your game console) to present relevant ads. ACR is nothing new and is one of the things many of us can agree on when taking a quick look at the initial releases of the new TV set.

Apparently, it would be easy for Roku to mess this up, interrupting your entertainment and irritating customers. The patent itself doesn’t guarantee that this concept of advertising on every HDMI input will become a reality. But it does follow a recent trend of streaming box (and stick) manufacturers directly challenging the boundaries of what consumers are willing to tolerate, and testing whether they can quietly move the goalposts. Microsoft is also getting involved in the same area.

A few months ago, Amazon began automatically Play trailer immediately on Fire TV device on launch If the user doesn’t take immediate action.This move will definitely happen annoyed a lot of people – but apparently not enough for the company to revert the changes. You can avoid autoplaying ads by disabling autoplaying ads in your settings, but even then you’ll sometimes see a full-screen image banner slideshow.

My immediate reaction to the ad was, “There’s no way they’re taking this seriously” and sought a review from Amazon. Spokesperson Madison Daniels told me the following:

We’re always looking for more ways to help customers discover new TV shows and movies on Fire TV, and advertising is one of the ways we do that. Our latest update to the Fire TV home screen means customers can discover great content to watch starting from the Learn More button on our most popular placements.

Isn’t the purpose of the home screen itself just discoverability? I digress.Not long after, a Chromecast user discovered A full-screen ad for this chicken tenders wrap From Little Carls. Does the packaging look delicious? certainly. But it’s beyond the typical (I would say expected/acceptable) type of advertising we’re used to seeing. Sponsored “recommendations” of movies and shows have become quite common on TV platforms and streaming apps. But chicken tacos? bring it on.

The inescapable fact is that advertising helps subsidize the cost of these streaming media players, some of which can be purchased for less than $30.but you can also Spend $100 more than buying a Fire TV Cube, you’ll get the same autoplay ads as someone who buys the cheapest model. This is a perfect example of the kind of clumsy advertising that really annoys me. What’s the point of buying a premium product?

That’s why I always recommend people spend the extra money and get the Apple TV 4K. It’s well worth it to avoid being inundated with ads. There are many ways to bypass ads on other devices, whether it’s Pi-hole, alternative launchers (on Android streamers), etc. But these are extra steps that most people will never take. For them, the outlook is getting bleaker.

I hope Roku is not implementing the ideas proposed in the patent LowpassRoku TVs are generally great! They’re reliable, can handle software updates over time, and work right out of the box in a way that many people will feel instantly familiar with.I’m looking forward to seeing how the Roku Pro TV compares to today’s impressive TVs. Mini LED competition comes from TCL, Hisense, etc., but I’m not confident The company won’t let us slow down This trajectory of getting ads in front of eyeballs at all costsEven if Roku doesn’t, it seems only a matter of time before another TV brand takes its worst cue from this patent.