Smart TVs: The Battle for Your Privacy Rages as Manufacturers Prioritize Ads Over Viewers
Many owners of Smart TV operating systems increasingly find themselves at the heart of a growing conflict—one that pits the preservation of viewer privacy against mounting pressure from the advertising industry. The crux of the matter lies in the shifting priorities of television manufacturers and software developers, who now seem more invested in harvesting user data and monetizing ad delivery than in advancing picture quality or enriching features.
At the StreamTV Show conference in Denver, Takashi Nakano, Vice President of Samsung TV Plus, openly acknowledged the industry’s state of perpetual internal tension. On one side are users, determined to guard their privacy—unwilling, as Nakano quipped, to let anyone know “what they watched, or what they had for breakfast.” On the other side are advertisers, for whom such data represents a veritable goldmine.
This extends far beyond basic viewership metrics. Operating systems now strive to discern everything about their users—from preferences to emotional states. LG, for example, recently announced that its webOS will employ an AI model designed to infer viewer tastes based on mood and personal convictions. While this allows for more precise ad targeting, it simultaneously erodes the boundaries of acceptable surveillance. Increasingly, experts are questioning whether all this data collection is truly necessary.
According to Nakano, the deluge of collected data is often excessive. He further noted that the demands of the advertising sector have given rise to an intricate ecosystem of data relay chains—many of which, he admitted, are wholly superfluous. This not only leads to technical inefficiencies but also heightens the risk to user privacy.
Nevertheless, companies continue to invest heavily in software. Manufacturers such as Samsung, LG, Roku, Vizio, Amazon, and even Walmart are progressively viewing operating systems as their primary profit engines. With profit margins on physical TVs dwindling, ad monetization has emerged as the beacon of growth. According to WPP Media, streaming TV advertising is projected to generate \$41.8 billion in 2025, swelling to \$71.9 billion by 2030. These revenues don’t merely enrich ad agencies—they fuel the aggressive development of embedded advertising frameworks.
Yet this paradigm gives rise to a new dilemma. Consumers, when selecting a TV, prioritize brand reputation, image quality, and price. The firmware, user interface, and even built-in recommendations are secondary concerns. However, post-purchase, these very elements become the conduit between the user and the broader digital ecosystem. As Catherine Pond of Vizio remarked, competition between operating systems ends at the point of sale—what follows is a battle for user attention.
At Roku, the emphasis lies in engaging the viewer as swiftly as possible. To this end, they employ recommendation engines, intuitive search features, personalization tools, and behavioral algorithms. The sooner a user begins streaming content through the native OS, the greater the likelihood they’ll remain within the brand’s carefully constructed advertising sphere.
Meanwhile, the threat to such ecosystems is already materializing. Should TV software continue to impose intrusive ads or collect data excessively, viewers may opt for external streaming devices—such as Apple TV or third-party boxes—that offer greater autonomy and are perceived as more privacy-conscious alternatives.
The industry thus finds itself in a vicious cycle: without data, targeted advertising falters; without advertising, profit wanes; and without trust, users vanish. If television manufacturers fail to value viewer interests as much as they do advertiser demands, they risk paying not just in revenue—but in lost loyalty.
