Telly starts shipping its free ad-supported 55-inch TVs
The free ad-supported TV is on its way to some customers.
so basically you're getting a surveillance device shipped straight to your living room.
Someone needs to jailbreak/root this TV!
I think that would be priceless. Send out a million TVs thinking man we are gonna make bank. Literally 990k jailbreak and use it as a dumb TV lol
(I have so much venom for this idea in general.)
Is there an intentional pun on it being priceless? I hope so
They have stated they have measures in place to detect anyone trying to do that and will require them to return the TV or pay for it.
Measures can be countered.
get that second screen working with HomeAssistant or somethin
I think that would be against the contract signed when reviewing the telly so they'd charge them.
For example I think it is mandatory to connect there TVs to the internet
It is. It also needs to be the primary television (it checks for that, probably by spying on your other devices), only allows ‘approved’ devices to be connected, and looks at your room to see how many people are watching (you’re not allowed to block it). It tattles on any attempt to alter or subvert it. If you break the TOS for whatever reason, they’ll automatically charge your credit card $1000. You have to give them your credit card info before they’ll ship.
I suppose it’s an okay device if you don’t care about privacy at all, or if you’re willing to pay $1k to jailbreak it.
Just cover the Ad screen with card. Like in the old days
I mentioned it on the other thread, but free-pc tried this twenty four years ago and it was a dumb idea then.
There was also NetZero, alladvantage, and probably others that I'm forgetting that gave people money and crap for watching ads. It turns out people don't like ads.
I remember having free dial-up Internet in the 90s in exchange for an adware banner while connected.
NetZero was the best for me, I was in middle school and this was the only way I could get Internet since my parents wouldn't pay for a respectable ISP, anyway I searched for ways to get rid of the banner and finally found one where it would just be a small black square 😄
Nah you couldn't pay me to put this TV in my home.
Also LOL at "smartest" TV. If you can't install your own apps, then it isn't exactly very smart.
I'm surprised they aren't calling it an AI TV or something. Isn't that the new buzzword?
Why would anyone want this? It's free, so it's obviously not even going to be a good quality TV.
There are no upsides to this.
It's worse than that. If the concept of the book 1984 were a television this would be it.
“What Orwell failed to predict is that we’d buy the cameras ourselves, and that our biggest fear would be that nobody was watching.”
All we need is to get a Peloton so our exercise can be monitored too.
The upside seems pretty clear? It's a free 55" TV. A lot of people won't care that it's not as good as other TVs.
You’re just not poor enough yet. They’ll keep inflating us into poverty until this becomes everybody’s best option
Low income folks who can't afford an alternative.
Honestly, if I was broke, I’d consider it. If you can afford anything else, then yeah, take that something else. But not everybody can afford stuff.
I tried to sign up just now but it’s US only. I don’t have a TV at all, I can’t afford one. I’d love this.
How does this work as a business? Are ad companies so desperate they will buy ad space on machines destined for people with zero disponible income and zero loan capability? Are the data from stalking people who can't afford anything that valuable?
At the end of the food chain surveillance capitalism works thanks to profit from conversion from ads to purchases. How do they expect conversion by targeting people who can hardly afford rent and necessities?
Because there are people out there that make FUCKING TERRIBLE decisions. You ever see someone at a big box store trying to load a $3000 tv into a car that has plastic bags taped over missing windows? Or someone parking a brand new car next to their dilapidated doublewide? Those people.
And you will get people taking them up on this to put it in the man cave or the rumpus room thinking they are being slick and gaming the system "lol, its not even my main tv!" not even realising the sheer volume of data they are handing over that way and that wether you like it or not advertisers spend bilions on getting into your head without you thinking its working.
They're siphoning up those people's data too though. And you can definitely still advertise basic goods and fast food to those people. If it's all Unilever, Pepsico and McDonalds, they've got an audience for those ads.
Start by giving them ads for payday loans or credit lines.
Should we put this company on the 2023 deathwatch list or the 2024 list?
Straight out of idiocracy
what prevents people from covering up the advertisements screen?
camera that watches you drink the verification can
I would expect them to include cameras that would check that you are looking at the tv and see the ads reflected in your eyes before it lets you play non-ad content.
The settings menus (input switcher, etc) will be on it. Also it will collect data on anything you view using the main screen (HDMI input, etc) regardless.
Big Brother.
Black Mirror.
Something as simple as a light sensor would stop that.
Kinda want to get one and rip it apart to extract the screens, strip the copper, etc. Turn it into a monitor with my own screen driver silicon.
I just looked it up and they charge up to $1000 if you block ads or tamper with it. They have all sorts of crazy requirements too.
Same, I wonder if it'll still function without internet, I'd just get a chromecast key or something on the HDMI. And just not connect the TV itself to the internet.
Granted it probably has some kind of contract that you get charged if you don't play the ad's
news sticker
does Lemmy have a r/boneappletea replacement?
Yes, called the same :)
It feels like increasingly ads are used to sell ad supported products so you can watch ads for things with ads. And at the end of the road it’s scams and subscriptions. Like it’s a good thing I don’t like capitalism because it feels like it’s looking bloated and a concerning shade of yellow
You don't like capitalism because you're the mark. Capitalism is for capitalists. Capitalists own capital. The vast, vast majority of the world, even in wealthy countries don't own any capital. They own possessions, which is different. Capitalists have just spent capital confusing people into thinking they should like it.
I also dislike capitalism because I’m justice oriented. Capital doesn’t want justice it wants constant mindless accumulation. But yeah it’s also a shell game with counterfeit money, at some point even the winners are gonna be caught holding the bag and everyone still around is fucked. Well we’ve been hearing police sirens for a while now, and now we can see cops heading over. But the con artists insist we keep playing instead of breaking down the table and making a run for it.
I'm imagining the tv from Idiocracy.
Did anyone have Fahrenheit 451 on their 2023 bingo card?
Isn't it literally the telescreen from Orwell's 1984
People keep saying that no one will hack it because it will cost them $1000. Plenty of people will pay that so that they can hack it anyway. And those people will come up with the countermeasures for the rest.
Low tech hack: Cover the camera, disable the mic and break the ad display.
Article I read says it'll have sensors that can detech how many people are in the room; didn't get to read the full T&Cs but you'd imagine the team behind this product has gameplanned for how people will try and circumvent whatever protections they added MacGyver style with what's around the house.
Someone absolutely will figure out a way to hack it... it'll be patched, people will be fined (or attempt to fine), the cat & mouse game will continue.
It's not about the money if you're trying to remove ads at that point. It's about proving that you can remove them
15 Million Merits
Resume viewing.
I genuinely don't know who would ever sign up for this. If you're too broke to afford a TV, just watch on your phone or laptop. Nobody needs a huge screen anymore. Then there's the number of people with ad blockers or paying a small amount per month just to get rid of ads. This just looks like a bad idea all the way from a bad VC investment to a bad job for the devs to a bad choice for the consumer. And at no point did anyone ever say "wait what are we doing again?"
Sad thing is, plenty of people will lap this up as a good thing and see it as a benefit. At least at first, until they realize they have to watch some TV based ads before they watch the ad roll on their YouTube video, followed by the second screen showing some banner ad the whole time. Yick.
As if a person who can’t afford a normal TV can just buy all the things from all those ads that advertisers think they’re selling.
This is such a bad idea that I suspect this is some form of viral advertising.
Okay so this isn’t ever something I’d even consider - but I wonder what’s to stop someone from just putting a piece of paper (figuratively) over the bottom portion of the screen…?
They have said that they can't stop people from doing that, but that the settings menus, such as the input switcher, will be on the bottom screen.
Probably some sort of stupid sensor they’ve put there for this exact reason.
Straight up Fahrenheit 451. Nice.
Hey!! I thought the same thing!! Great minds…are…sad ☹️ lol
I'm not sure whether this is real or coming directly from a cyberpunk future.
Wonder if you could root it and just put software on it to do what you want?
I’m not too surprised; but to take the example of one country, in the USA where I live, 11% of the people (that’s about 40M people) live below the poverty line, and that is even much less money than a livable wage where you can afford rent, food and nothing else. I’m speaking of the US as an example, but I’m sure it’s not an uncommon situation in other countries either.
My point is: a massive amount of people can’t afford to spend $100 on entertainment, ever. I spent some time with such families, and I can tell you it is not at all an uncommon thing. If they have a TV today, they probably got it for free from somewhere (possibly a dumpster), and it looks exactly like they did. That’s a massive amount of people who would desire this kind of upgrade.
Now is it the right population to serve ads to, that’s a different question.
Now is it the right population to serve ads to, that’s a different question.
Absolutely!
People under the poverty line are more likely to go for get-rich-quick schemes, for an example.
Now whether it's MORAL to serve those ads to that population is also a different question.
That’s an excellent point.
How I could get a 55" 4K Monitor without internet, microphones cameras and with blazing fast boot time?
As already said you just need to buy something explicitly listed as a monitor.
One thing you'll find is that at 55" with decent specs you'll be paying a significantly higher price than you could find a 4k TV. That's because good monitors of that size are often super high end displays. E.g. Nvidia branded big format gaming displays.
It's called a monitor, that's basically the difference between TVs and monitors these days, since the death of terrestrial and cable TV. So just get a regular monitor like this https://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-Monitor-3840x2160-Response-S55U-SA/dp/B0B4MJBSD9/ or this https://www.amazon.com/Philips-Computer-Monitors-559M1RYV-Replacement/dp/B096CG575L/
Wish I could get a 60” or 65” monitor. 55” is a touch too small for my needs.
Sitting right at $1k
Ooof! They couldn't pay me enough to put this shit in my home.
Wonder if it’s hackable?
Probably but I have to assume they've accounted for that and in their assessment the risk of breaking the usage agreement is greater than the value and effort required to exploit the device
No, the maker has stated they have measures in place to detect any tampering, and that if you tamper with the device, fail to connect it to the Internet, or do not use it frequently they will make you return it or pay for it.
realistically, is there anything stopping me from ripping it apart and using one of those screen driver modules you can buy off ebay to control it and essentially turn it into a big computer monitor?
There's something like a $1000 fine if you're not using it in the approved manner.
Not a fine. That comes from the government. A contract penalty. That they'd likely have to take you to court to get you to pay. Which would be a fun expense for them.
They probably still are the owners of the device and would make you pay for a new one right when they discover that you're not generating revenue anymore.
You'd have to try it to find out. I'd like to think they were smart enough to brick this thing if it doesn't call home every so often or maybe it has a unique controller? Maybe you're really badass and can make it happen. They could always try to come at you for...$550 I guess? I think that's what their fine print says.
edit: correction
I’m sure you have to make an account to buy one, and I’m sure they require you to connect it or they charge you for the thing.
So if you're watching cable TV you can watch ads while watching ads.
You can be watched while you watch ads while watching ads
c/angryupvote
I bet that someone is going to code an AdBlock 5 minutes after it being launched publicly
So a company is giving away a super dooper ulterwide for free... I wouldn't complain, I would get one, imagine that as a secondary display.
Oh hell no
Ugh. No thanks.
