Should i install samba interactive tv full#
Should i install samba interactive tv tv#
Should i install samba interactive tv free#

As Which?’s TV reviewer for, I buy, test and recommend plenty of them each year. However, our investigation has found that smart TVs can track you every time you change channel, press a button on the remote or visit a website using the browser. This can give you more personalised recommendations for things to watch, but your data could also be used to provide targeted advertising on your smart TV’s homescreen. Some TVs allow you to block tracking, but this can result in stripped back smart TV features that are almost unusable. In some cases we found that if you disagreed with the TV’s T&Cs you couldn’t even access the apps and web browser on your TV. Plus, if you’re unhappy with TV tracking you could struggle to return it to the shop, as this could be viewed by the retailer as a moral objection, rather than a fault covered by your statutory rights. I think smart TVs have become too smart for their own good.

Should i install samba interactive tv free#

I am looking forward to the ability to pick up my remote (or better yet, respond with voice control or other simple interface) to get my free Coke Zero.ĭebbie Fitzgerald is the Director of Client Application Technologies at CableLabs.Manufacturers should keep tracking to a minimum, be 100% transparent about what they’re doing, and give you options to opt out that don’t mean you lose significant features. With 4K and 8K televisions coming out with much higher resolution, the real-estate for interactive applications is even more compelling.

The fact that advertisers are still seeking ways to engage audiences through interactivity makes me optimistic that the issues discussed can be resolved and consumers will have simple ways to interact with advertisements. What happens when the set-top box displays a graphical overlay, such as a menu or even an interactive application, and the Smart TV does the same? This is known as “app collision,” and is a problem recognized by the industry. Smart TVs with embedded ACR can support synchronized interactive applications, but it can also cause some problems. Ensequence has enhanced advertisements with the Samsung platform. Showtime has “enhanced” their original content with interactive applications (SHO Sync) based on this platform on LG TVs. LG has their “Live Plus” feature based on Cognitive Networks engine, several other manufacturers use Cognitive or Samba ACR engines. Since 2011, some smart TV manufacturers have been embedding Automatic Content Recognition (ACR) in various television models to enable HTML5-based applications to launch on the TV.

Although there were over 25 million EBIF-enabled set-top boxes deployed in the US at one time, the promise of interactive ads never really materialized.Īnother platform for interactivity is the smart TV. The cable industry went down the path of EBIF and tru2way, and for a while there was a flurry of second screen apps. It would have been MUCH EASIER if I could have just picked up the remote and clicked the “OK” button to have Target send me the coupon! The Quest for Interactive Adsįor years, advertisers, cable operators, and television manufacturers have sought the best way to engage viewing audiences with interactive ads. Luckily, I was using my Xfinity X1G set-top box which includes a time-shift buffer feature, so I could just rewind 30 seconds and re-run the commercial. By the time I had dug through the screens on my smartphone to launch Shazam, the commercial was over. Pretty Cool! You can try it out using the ad on this Youtube link.īut it wasn’t quite as easy as I made it sound. About 20 minutes later, I received a text message with a URL to a barcode to redeem for one free 20-oz. Pressing that button took me to another page that prompted for my birthdate and phone number. When the glass was full, it then prompted with a button to “Redeem at Target”.

Should i install samba interactive tv full#

The ad depicted a Coke glass full of ice with Coke Zero being poured into it. When the ad starts, it declares “This is a drinkable commercial,” then prompts the user to “Shazam now to drink it.” I launched Shazam on my smartphone, it picked up the audio, and launched a Coke Zero ad on my phone. Recently, Coke aired an interactive advertisement during the NCAA Final Four basketball games.