Technology

59554 readers

3427 users here now

This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.

Our Rules

Follow the lemmy.world rules.
Only tech related content.
Be excellent to each another!
Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
Politics threads may be removed.
No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
Only approved bots from the list below, to ask if your bot can be added please contact us.
Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed

Approved Bots

founded 1 year ago

MODERATORS

Roku has patented a way to show ads over anything you plug into your TV (arstechnica.com)

submitted 7 months ago by ForgottenFlux@lemmy.world to c/technology@lemmy.world

11 comments fedilink hide all child comments

A patent application from the company spotted by Lowpass describes a system for displaying ads over any device connected over HDMI, a list that could include cable boxes, game consoles, DVD or Blu-ray players, PCs, or even other video streaming devices. Roku filed for the patent in August 2023 and it was published in November 2023, though it hasn't yet been granted.

The technology described would detect whether content was paused in multiple ways—if the video being displayed is static, if there's no audio being played, if a pause symbol is shown anywhere on screen, or if (on a TV with HDMI-CEC enabled) a pause signal has been received from some passthrough remote control. The system would analyze the paused image and use metadata "to identify one or more objects" in the video frame, transmit that identification information to a network, and receive and display a "relevant ad" over top of whatever the paused content is.

top 11 comments

sorted by: hot top controversial new old

[–] PoliticallyIncorrect@lemm.ee 1 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Good way to kill their product..

[–] derpgon@programming.dev 1 points 7 months ago

Sadly they already have all the money

[–] watson387@sopuli.xyz 0 points 7 months ago (1 children)

That's some scummy shit...

[–] melpomenesclevage@lemm.ee 1 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Everything owned will do this sooner or later.

[–] Antagnostic@lemmy.world 1 points 7 months ago

owned

I do not think that word means what you think it means.

[–] DogPeePoo@lemm.ee 0 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Now, if only they would invent the exact opposite of this, I would buy it

I want zero ads. Ever.

[–] melpomenesclevage@lemm.ee 0 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago) (1 children)

They did! Its called a pihole plus ublock origin plus piracy.

You can't buy it, only the hardware, but the software is all free.

[–] Steve@startrek.website 0 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Still doesnt block youtube ads 😩

[–] naitro@lemmy.world 0 points 7 months ago (1 children)

For ad-free youtube on Android TV: SmartTube

For ad-free youtube on mobile Android devices: ReVanced

For desktop: Firefox + uBlock origin

[–] onion@feddit.de 0 points 7 months ago

Also for Android: NewPipe
Also for desktop: FreeTube

[–] shimdidly@lemmy.world -1 points 7 months ago

Ever since Roku deplatformed Alex Jones I knew they were unprincipled and no good. Glad I left and never looked back.