Samsung has big plans to besiege its smart TV owners with targeted apps, judging by an alleged marketing pitch leaked online.
According to a purported Samsung document published by Digiday, the company is hoping to lure advertisers by promising “exclusive 1st party viewing data at scale”, meaning the company will be able to provide advertisements based on what the set owner is watching.
The pitch points out that linear television viewing is dropping off and its status as the largest smart TV provider will enable the company to serve targeted ads regardless of whether the owner is watching content on traditional over-the-air television or through an online app like Netflix.
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It says its Samsung Ads platform can reach 35% of households in the UK, which equates to about four million televisions sets, with tailored content advertising content delivered at household level.
The result is those advertisements appearing on the home screen of the Samsung Smart TV interface, encouraging them to dive into content. The pitch deck also points out that advertisers will be able target users who watch a certain genre, like sports or reality TV for example.
Digiday
Within the document, Samsung purportedly writes: “Identified through Samsung’s ACR [Automated Content Recognition] technology, we can target households that watch lots of series shows, perfect for binge watchers.”
It even works if TV set owners are using third-party devices to watch content through their Samsung set. Connected devices like the Fire TV Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast and Roku are compatible Samsung says. It’s this element that might prove to be the biggest turn off for Samsung TV ones.
Samsung has already come under fire for displaying advertisements via its smart TV interface. Way back in 2016, users expressed displeasure at being fed advertisements after paying large sums to buy the television in the first place.
Many users said advertisements were the reason they ditched traditional television for on-demand apps in the first place. The current plan suggests there’ll be no getting away from them if you own a Samsung Smart TV
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.