We were used to ad breaks when watching live TV, and even if you broke the cord, it’s not hard to find ads. They’re increasingly common on streaming services, and now if you own an LG TV, you’ll find them on your screensaver too.
LG’s smart TVs are now showing full-screen advertisements before the conventional screensaver activates when the TV is idle. These ads, which have started rolling out this month, will appear across the homescreen and will advertise both LG’s own products and those from third parties. LG is no stranger to adding ads into its smart TV platform, with full audio auto-playing ads being a feature on its app store for over three years. With the company planning to expand its webOS platform to more third-party TVs and even its own non-TV hardware in the future, we can expect to see more advertising on LG devices in the coming years.
LG Ad Solutions’ technology chief, Dave Rudnick, stated in a press release that these ads have proven effective in testing and present a valuable opportunity for brands to gain prominence on the largest screen in the room. He also noted that viewing habits have changed, and most viewers now multitask while watching TV, making screensaver ads a more relevant advertising platform.
Some may find these ads intrusive, and rightly so. But it’s worth noting that they can currently be disabled in the TV settings menu by turning off the “Screen Saver Promotion” toggle. It’s also a growing trend we’ve seen among TV OS developers. Everyone from Roku to Google TV is doing ads these days, and they’re an easy way for developers and advertisers to make money on what’s otherwise a free-to-use operating system (although you did technically pay for your TV).
Hopefully, these won’t end up being as intrusive as they look.
Source: LG Ads, FlatpanelsHD via The Verge
