Adam Birney / Android Authority
long story short
- Roku has filed for a patent that could inject ads into your viewing experience, even if you’re using a non-Roku streaming device.
- The patent describes sophisticated methods to detect when you pause content and analyze what you’re watching to display relevant ads.
Roku may want to expand its advertising reach beyond its own platforms.A recently discovered patent application Lowpass revealed that the company is exploring how to inject ads into the video feeds of third-party devices connected to Roku TVs.
This means that even if you’re playing a game on your Xbox or streaming via an Amazon Fire Stick, your Roku TV can automatically detect when you pause a movie or game and then display targeted ads on the screen.
Currently, Roku has limited visibility and advertising potential when you switch your Roku TV from an external device to the HDMI input. The patent aims to solve this problem by allowing Roku to monitor the video signal on these HDMI ports.
The system Roku describes in the patent is quite complex. It can detect pauses through a variety of methods, such as identifying the Pause button press on the remote, analyzing audio and images to see if the sound disappears and the image remains the same, or using computer vision techniques to spot when a standard pause appears on the screen symbol.
Once a pause is detected, the paused frame will be analyzed to understand your viewing preferences. This data will then determine the types of ads you’ll see. For example, if you pause on a scene with a beach and beer bottles, ads for travel and drinks might appear. The patent even suggests that Roku could use gaming signals (such as low-latency mode activation) to identify you as a gamer and serve you ads tailored to your interests.
It’s worth noting that there’s no guarantee that Roku will actually implement this technology, but the patent does raise concerns about increased ad intrusion. While ad breaks are common on streaming services, ads triggered by your own pauses sound more disruptive and raise questions about how much personal data Roku tracks to make these ads hyper-targeted.
Roku may think this will make the ads more relevant and therefore less annoying. It could also point to the possibility of lowering the cost of Roku devices for consumers, which isn’t that different from the many ad-supported services we already offer.