HardwareRoku has filed a patent for your TV to detect when you’re paused and play ‘relevant ads’. Nope, no thank you, not for me I’m afraidWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
HardwareRoku has filed a patent for your TV to detect when you’re paused and play ‘relevant ads’. Nope, no thank you, not for me I’m afraidWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Future)
Advertising seems to be everywhere. A necessary evil, perhaps, as our free time is gradually monetised in an effort to make those delicious bucks, pounds and Australian dollary-doos, and companies expect to, shock horror, make some cash from their users. However, if you thought you were safe from overt advertising while watching an ad-free streaming service or playing a game, Roku has different ideas. The company has filed a patent that would allow its TVs to detect when you’re paused while using an HDMI connected device, and show you a lovely targeted advert.
Roku has already spent a fair amount of time and effort attempting to monetise your idle time while using its streaming platforms, introducing thesurprisingly popularRoku City screensaver andselling sponsorships to major brandsto advertise on its various rolling landscapes.
However, it’s difficult to imagine users reacting positively to the idea that your TV could interrupt your media contentoutsidethe confines of Roku’s own streaming efforts, even if you happened to be paused.
I can think of few things more irritating than pausing a console game, getting up to make myself a cup of tea (I am British, after all), and returning to find an advert that thought I wanted a cowboy hat because I was playing Red Dead Redemption 2. Nope, no thank you, try again please, I’ll wait.
Frombanksselling ad space on apps to streaming services like Amazon Primeadjusting its subscription tiersto show more advertising content to more users unless they cough up, maximising ad revenue seems to be a primary concern for all internet-based businesses.
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Screen queens(Image credit: Future)Best gaming monitor: Pixel-perfect panels for your PC.Best high refresh rate monitor: Screaming quick.Best 4K monitor for gaming: When only high-res will do.Best 4K TV for gaming: Big-screen 4K gaming.
Screen queens
(Image credit: Future)Best gaming monitor: Pixel-perfect panels for your PC.Best high refresh rate monitor: Screaming quick.Best 4K monitor for gaming: When only high-res will do.Best 4K TV for gaming: Big-screen 4K gaming.
(Image credit: Future)
Best gaming monitor: Pixel-perfect panels for your PC.Best high refresh rate monitor: Screaming quick.Best 4K monitor for gaming: When only high-res will do.Best 4K TV for gaming: Big-screen 4K gaming.
That being said, injecting adverts into TV viewers idle time even when they’re simply using the HDMI ports to use another device seems like a step too far.
Here’s hoping this is another patent that never sees the light of day in our home devices. Everyone’s got to make a buck somehow, of course, but this method in particular seems like a level of intrusion that goes slightly beyond the pale.
Leave my pause time alone, Roku. We all need a bit of breathing room sometimes, and I’d rather not spend it wondering whether I really do need a new hat.
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