"keeping users supplied with adverts"
Nice to know that we are valued customers!
Web browser biz Opera Software will embed its HTML5 application store into chips from MediaTek, and thus into the heart of set-top boxes and smart TVs around the world. Opera's store is already to be found in Sony's Bravia range of TVs and Blu-Ray players, but being integrated into the chipset will give manufacturers an easy …
Viewers may still baulk at paying for TV apps, which is OK as Opera's advertising platform has been integrated into the latest version of the store so content can remain free.
Conversely, if they simply got a cut for each app that was purchased or charged for click-through traffic on each product based on use as advertising, they could do away with the annoyance to the customers and generate more accurate customer information for their clients.
I like Opera's browser, but I think they are behind the curve on this one.
What gives with these modern bricks? They force feed only rubbish?
As a set top box it might do as a door stop and nothing else.
I was recently sent a new phone, it remains unused with its wonderful feature set of complete cr*p. It has a fixed unmovable list of 'Bookmarks', all totally useless items. Most of them I have never heard of and all of them I have no interest in ever using.
Can it do anything I need? No, of course not.
So I still use my 8 year old mobile telephone as at least it works and does what I need..
>if the TV app stores become anything like as polarised and politically important as mobile stores
When I got my new Samsung TV I went through all the reviews, especially the negative ones.
A lot of those expressed frustration at the difficulty of using a browser or app on a "smart" TV. Without keyboard, without mice. I was familiar enough with this rant, having had the same issue with my PS3, so I bought the set. Awesome TV. Netflix works, which saves power over booting up the PS3 to run it. But Youtube searching is atrociously slow. Like the PS3.
I hope Opera makes itself at home on TVs, it sure beats Sony's craptographic attempt at writing its own PS3 browser.
But I don't think we should confuse TVs with computers or mobiles, both of which have way cleverer input devices. Though a Kinect-type pointer could work, provided it was precise enough. Or a clever phone-app remote, but Samsung's current implementation is not.