LG introduced a new operating system for smart TVs, River OS. This new platform has as main focus the personalization of the device, the control of advanced functions through voice commands, and a navigation system how and fluid within their applications and services.
New operating system River OS for TVs
River OS was presented by LG Ads, a division of the Korean company dedicated to advertising management.
LG produces TVs and screens under its own brand, but the firm has OEM (original equipment manufacturer) contracts with which it wants to make the first installation of smart TVs with the River OS in India by the end of 2021. The growth would then continue to the United States and other countries during 2022, gradually increasing.
The functions that River OS offers are the essential ones expected today from a TV with an Internet connection:
- Search,
- Discovery,
- Recommendations
- Viewing of content, through customized sources, whether these are linear or on-demand content.
With voice control as another feature, River OS uses natural language processing to identify who is watching television. It may therefore give targeted recommendations for each member of the family without requiring them to manually change profiles. Thanks to this identification system, personalized suggestions are provided for each viewer who adjusts the TV, as long as he or she is a regular household user.
John Gee, director of business development at LG Ads, said, “With streaming dominating viewing time today, it’s still too difficult for people to find, discover and enjoy the programs they want to watch, across literally thousands of available content sources. River OS solves that challenge elegantly and offers new, fully voice-controlled Smart TV features that consumers will find innovative and essential. And we can package content with advertising in a way that allows our OEM partners to offer a high-quality product at an affordable price.”
LG is seeking to capitalize on this new technology by creating a new advertising space for companies through which they may target consumers based on their interests. This strategy aims to use the personalization expertise described above to create unique ad spaces on the home screen or in the content itself (trailers, videos, microsites, or other experiences).
No further information was given about the operating system on which LG currently employs in televisions. It’s possible that River OS is its successor, or maybe a parallel system for another line of devices. We’ll have to wait and see.
