Now, it is pretty impossible not to see advertising anywhere in these modern times, whether through live television or all the streamers. Well, if you are using an LG smart TV, you might also notice their new addition to the ever-expanding ad space: your screensaver. Yep, LG started distributing full-screen ads when your TV is idle, turning your screensaver into yet another ad space.
LG Smart TVs to Get Screensaver Ads
Later this month, LG smart TV owners can expect full-screen ads popping up before the conventional screensaver kicks in. The ads won’t just promote LG’s own products but will also show advertisements from third-party brands-a prime piece of real estate for advertisers on your home screen. LG has been incorporating ads into its smart TV platform for years, so this latest move isn’t entirely unexpected. In fact, it has been the case that full-audio, autoplaying ads have appeared in the LG app store for over three years.
But for some, the addition of advertising to the screensaver feature may be one step beyond the pale. After all, screensavers have tended to be a calming or benign on-screen presence; now they’re becoming an ad space. And with LG continuing to push its webOS platform out to an increasing array of third-party TVs, and perhaps even to some degree its non-TV hardware, that’s unlikely to change anytime soon.
What LG Says About Screensaver Ads
These screensaver ads have worked, according to Dave Rudnick, the Chief Technology Officer at LG Ad Solutions. Speaking about this in a recent press statement, Rudnick mentioned that brands were lining up, wanting to dive into the new ad space, referring to the screensaver as “the largest screen in the room.” He said that viewing habits changed drastically in recent years. It could be a unique chance to get on the attention platform during moments when one is doing nothing, and by this, many users are multitasking-such as cleaning up, looking at phones, or browsing the web while the TV is on.
The Growing Trend of Ads on Smart TVs
This isn’t the only brand that has started to monetize ads within their operating systems. Other popular platforms include Roku and Google TV. With smart TVs reaching a wider demographic and their operating systems being largely free to use- despite the cost of the television itself-advertising has been an easy revenue stream for developers and advertisers alike.
If you’ve seen them already, you’re not alone, and the trend is very likely to continue. The move to monetize the screensaver isn’t a one-off for LG but rather part of their bigger strategy to introduce more ads on its devices.
How to Turn Off Screensaver Ads on LG TVs
Understandably, these new ads are painfully intrusive for many users. So for those of you who find them intrusive, be afraid not, since there’s hope: the screensaver ads can indeed be disabled. Go into your TV settings menu, find the option called “Screen Saver Promotion,” and flip off the switch there. While that won’t stop all forms of advertising on your LG TV, at least it’ll remove the ads from your screensaver.
If you are having trouble locating the setting, or if you’d like more steps in detail, LG’s official support page will have more detailed instructions on how to do it.
Is This the Future of Smart TVs?
Slapping ads onto screensavers raises all sorts of questions about what the future holds for the industry. If smart TVs become yet another ad-supported model, then the user experience could get more commercialized than ever. As LG and other manufacturers seek to find new ways to make money beyond hardware sales, advertisements will likely continue their proliferation throughout more areas of the TV interface. Even so, LG acknowledges that there’s a line between monetizing its platform and driving away users. In giving customers the ability to shut off screensaver ads, LG provides customers with a means of maintaining a level of control over their viewing experience-at least for now.
What’s Next for LG TVs?
Where LG is, in fact, forging ahead with the formalization of the plans to expand the webOS platform into more devices, every likelihood exists of even further applications of advertising across the LG ecosystem from smart TVs right down to other hardware. Whether these ads will stay as intrusive as they appear to be is yet to come, but for sure, the DNA of advertisements has been carved deep inside the core of modern smart TV platforms.
Conclusion: Ad Invasion or Opportunity?
For some, this may feel like an unwanted intrusion into their TV experience. For others, it could feel like a minor annoyance, given that smart TV platforms remain free to use beyond the cost of hardware. In any case, though, the rise of screensaver ads speaks volumes about how manufacturers and advertisers regard the increasingly ambient TV as a pure revenue device.
The more LG continues to push the limits on what its ads can do, the decision ultimately falls on the users whether the added convenience of a smart TV is worth the frustration of additional advertising. Meanwhile, be sure and dig into your LG TV’s settings to turn those annoying screensaver ads off if they start to grind on your nerves.
