Roku TVs could one day show ads as soon as you pause playing a game on a connected Xbox, or stop a stream on an Apple TV.

Roku is exploring ways to show consumers ads on its TVs even when they are not using its streaming platform: The company has been looking into injecting ads into the video feeds of third-party devices connected to its TVs, according to a recent patent filing.

This way, when an owner of a Roku TV takes a short break from playing a game on their Xbox, or streaming something on an Apple TV device connected to the TV set, Roku would use that break to show ads. Roku engineers have even explored ways to figure out what the consumer is doing with their TV-connected device in order to display relevant advertising.

    • @[email protected]English
      43•2 months ago

      I’m sure that a DisplayPort device in a chain can also inject video, but I have to admit that I would kind of like to not have two competing video standards, and my impression is that DisplayPort tends to lead HDMI technically, so…

      • @pivot_rootEnglish
        86•2 months ago

        DisplayPort: We have

        • Higher maximum resolution.
        • Better support for higher refresh rates.
        • Multi-stream transport so you can use a single display cable for multiple monitors.

        HDMI: Oh yeah? Well, we have

        • Royalties.
        • Specifications hidden behind contracts.
        • An emphasis on implementing DRM technology that makes it hard to use a capture card.

        Fuck HDMI.