Roku just unveiled the biggest overhaul to its smart TV operating system (OS) in 10 years. One of the most noticeable differences is that ad space now takes up a large chunk of the screen’s landing page.
Before the update, loading up a Roku OS-powered smart TV or streaming device would yield a menu on the left side with sections including “What to Watch,” “Live,” and “Search.” The right side had a row of tiles for “Recommended” content above several rows of tiles representing downloaded apps. Once a user started started navigating the home screen, the menu would collapse, and they'd see a large ad on the right side of the screen.
The old Roku OS landing page before the ad is visible.
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Roku
In November 2023, we reported on dubious claims made by marketing firm Cox Media Group (CMG) Local Solutions. The company advertised a service called Active Listening on a website that said, “It’s true. Your devices are listening to you” and claimed it could use “voice data” to help advertisers target ads to specific people.
Naturally, panic ensued. 404 Media, which initially spotted the website, for instance, wrote that the idea of smartphones listening to people to sell products “may finally be a reality."
The idea of a marketing firm using AI to “detect relevant conversations via smartphones, smart TVs, and other devices” in real time—according to a since-deleted CMG blog post from November 2023 (still viewable via the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine)—has raised alarms.
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For years, owners of Vizio smart TVs have had little control over the software running on their sets—software that can track viewing habits, push ads, and generally shape the experience of using the device.
The Software Freedom Conservancy (SFC), a US nonprofit that promotes and provides legal support for free and open source software projects, isn't happy about that—so much so that it has spent eight years trying to force the release of the complete source code for Vizio's Linux-based smart TV operating system.
Now, after numerous delays since the SFC filed suit in 2021, a California jury will decide in August whether Vizio must provide that code in executable form to SFC and any Vizio TV owner who wants it.
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