Roku Once Again Shows Us Why the Apple TV Is So Great
Credit: Amazon
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Most of today’s streaming boxes already feel like the Wild West of advertising. However, just when you thought things couldn’t get any worse, Roku is pulling a “hold my beer” move.
It’s bad enough that last year Roku’s CEO said the company would begin showing video ads on the Home Screen, but now it’s taking that a step further and showing pre-roll video ads before you even get to the Home Screen.
Home screen video ads are annoying, to be sure. However, those were at least interruptible; they simply replaced the static image ad that’s been there for years with an auto-playing video, but you weren’t forced to watch it; you could navigate into an app and carry on as usual.
Nevertheless, the company’s CEO, Anthony Wood, also told investors last April that it was “testing other types of video ad units” and “looking at other experiences we can add to the home screen that would be where we can innovate more video advertising.”
Now, we’re seeing the results of this so-called “innovation.”
Two days ago, irate Roku users chimed in on the r/Roku subreddit, complaining about how they’re getting “unskippable ads” as soon as they turn on their set-top boxes. The post accumulated 51 upvotes and 26 replies before the thread was locked, but more of the responses considered the move as ranging from “unacceptable” to “awful” and some have said flat-out that they’ll jump ship if this continues.
I also had that happen today. If it keeps up my Roku devices will be in the trash.
Cleveland_Steve, Reddit
The bad news here is that this isn’t a glitch, but there’s a silver lining in that Roku is apparently just testing this, likely to see how much its customers are willing to tolerate.
When ArsTechnica reached out to Roku for comment, a spokesperson confirmed that the company is autoplaying ads on startup, but that it’s merely part of a “recent test.”
Roku’s business “has and will always require continuous testing and innovation across design, navigation, content, and our first-rate advertising products,” the spokesperson told ArsTechnica, adding that the “recent test is just the latest example” of this, “as we explore new ways to showcase brands and programming while still providing a delightful and simple user experience.”
Unfortunately, Roku didn’t respond to ArsTechnica’s requests for comment on whether it plans to make these autoplaying ads a permanent part of Roku OS, nor which devices are affected.
Of course, Roku isn’t alone here. A commenter on Roku’s community forum cited by ArsTechnica said they’d already “trashed all of [their] Amazon boxes years ago because of this garbage,” adding that their “Rokus will be next” if this continues.
Sadly, there’s every reason to believe this will only get worse, and Roku could be leading the way. Last year, Janko Roettgers of Lowpass discovered a patent that would allow the company to show ads on Roku-enabled TVs whenever you pause content on any HDMI port — even one that your Apple TV, Xbox, or Blu-ray player is plugged into. This could even go so far as to use automatic content recognition (ACR) to analyze what you’re playing through that HDMI port so that it can serve you relevant ads. Those have yet to come to fruition, and many patented ideas never do, but it reveals a disturbing trend in the company’s thinking.
Nevertheless, as Roku, Amazon, and Google continue looking for new and “innovative” ways to ram advertising down our throats, Apple remains an oasis of peace. One Redditor questioned whether there’s any point in leaving Roku as “all devices will have the same ads” in a few months, but as someone else pointed out, Apple sets itself apart here.
The only device not crammed with ads is Apple TV
IceAndFire91, Reddit
That’s partly because the Apple TV is pricier than the average streaming stick. However, if price subsidies were the only consideration, then Roku and Amazon should provide ad-free experiences on their premium devices like the Roku Ultra and Fire TV Cube, which are priced in the same range as the Apple TV 4K. Yet, these devices are just as laden with ads as their $20 streaming sticks.
The real issue here is that Apple isn’t in the advertising business. It’s not even in an “ad-adjacent” business. Apple doesn’t collect data on its users — the Apple TV delivers a private viewing experience so that what you watch on Netflix stays on Netflix, with no tracking or monitoring going on.
Although Apple does run search ads on the App Store and highlights content in the Apple TV app (not on the device’s home screen, but in the app of the same name), those are relevant to their respective services — apps in the App Store, movies and TV shows in the TV app. You won’t find ads for sneakers or breakfast cereals popping up, and it’s not even clear if Apple is selling ad slots in the TV app, or merely highlighting popular content to help give folks suggested things to watch.
That’s why even hardcore Android fans are embracing Apple’s set-top box. Android Police commissioned me to write a review for the Apple TV 4K a few months ago as a powerful streaming box for anyone, Apple fan or not. The Apple TV 4K may be the one streaming box on the market today where you really are the customer and not the product.
