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posted by on Saturday January 28 2017, @01:41AM   Printer-friendly
from the they-know-everything-now dept.

Apologies up front; this is playing out in Dutch media and there do not seem to be English sources available. Nevertheless, I thought the following would be of interest to SN:

Philips TVs are manufactured by TP Vision. Recently, TP Vision announced that it would include more ads on its (Philips-branded) smart-tvs. Comment by Paulo Lopez of TP Vision to the media:

"We know very much about viewing behaviour. Which channels are being watched, which apps are being used. Based on that, we can make ads more relevant in the future." (translation mine).

Well that did cause a few ripples, amongst others with the data protection agency in the Netherlands. They already slapped TP Vision on the wrist back in 2013 for doing basically this. Now the data protection agency is starting another investigation. Moreover, tech-heads also noticed and kicked up a bit of a sh*tstorm at popular Dutch tech site Tweakers.net: more ads, warning, with 555 and 133 comments respectively (on a site where 100+ comments is a lot).

Do you know of any other brands that engage in such sleazy behaviour? And: would it be possible to block the ads while retaining the smart functionality (assuming a user who wants that), when the TV would try to detect/prevent that?

[Ed. Note: All I found in English is a press release from Improve Digital, the advertising company. Typical PR language there.]


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  • (Score: 1) by anubi on Saturday January 28 2017, @06:55AM

    by anubi (2828) on Saturday January 28 2017, @06:55AM (#459831) Journal

    I may as well forego my rant. You damn near covered everything.

    TV just frustrates the hell out of me. One advertiser after another. Long ads. And that constant tease - they wind down like they are finished then crank back up again - like a damned fly that's made it its life mission to buzz around in front of me until I dispatch it.

    And even if I watch the ad, the audio says one thing, while the video overlays stuff I can't read. All that trickytalk does is make me think the business is nothing more than a huckstering con artist. Buy one, get another one free! Just pay separate fee!

    Businesses dream up so many ways of communication in contorted ways. Imagine having to deal with one once it has your charge card number!

    By the time I have sat through an hour of TV, about the last thing I feel good about is calling up a business with charge card in hand.

    If WalMart does not have it, try AliExpress or Amazon. Make it yourself. Or figure the damned thing they are selling ( especially things like Smart TV's ) will bring so many problems to my life that I flat do not want one - even if they gave me one.

    My phone is irritant enough. I got so mad with mine today I was sorely tempted to damage it. My old 500 series never messed with me the way this modern phone will.

    --
    "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]
  • (Score: 2) by ShadowSystems on Saturday January 28 2017, @07:23AM

    by ShadowSystems (6185) <ShadowSystemsNO@SPAMGmail.com> on Saturday January 28 2017, @07:23AM (#459838)

    *Nodding sadly*
    The ads only make it worse.
    You'll have the show at a comfortable volume but then the ads come on & suddenly THE DAMN THING IS SCREAMING AT YOU.
    *Scoops up brain & pours it back in through the ear*
    Or the "fine print" thattheyreadazillionmilesanhour & there's not a chance in hell of understanding the gibberish.
    *Cleans out ears with a Q-Tip*
    Or you can hear the voice saying one thing but the singing describing another, making you wonder WTF they were smoking to create it.
    *Sniffs for the bong*
    At least online I can use an Ad Blocker, Hosts file, & various browser security bits to remove that particular plague from my life.
    (They won't get my eyes anyway, I can't see them to interact with them in the first place.)
    I've only got a Feature phone instead of a supposedly Smart one.
    Given I only have to recharge my phone once every week & a half, I don't have to worry about some random hacker using BlueTooth to pwn me (I've turned it off since I don't use it), it doesn't run apps so there's a security screen door that's been replaced with an air tight blast door, & it only cost $40 (full price!) so I'm not too terribly chuffed if it gets lost, stolen, or destroyed.
    (If my phone cost $400+ then I'd be right bloody pissed.)

    TV sucks.
    I'm glad to be a Cantankerous Old Fart.
    Now get off my damned lawn.
    =-)p