Samsung has decided to do something incredibly stupid. The company is pushing out a software update in the U.S. that will make ads show up on the screens of its Family Hub fridges. These refrigerators already cost thousands of dollars. The cheapest ones go for around $1,800, and some go up to nearly $5,000. They’re basically a tablet, a smart home device, a calendar and a TV rolled into one display that’s plastered onto a fridge. Now it wants to display ads to manipulate you into spending more money.
How the Ads Work
Contrary to what’s being said online, these ads will not lock you out of your fridge until you’ve watched them in full. That’s just a rumor. Instead, the ads will appear as tiles or panels on the Cover Screen when the fridge is idle. If you’ve set the display to show a photo album or artwork, the ads don’t show. If you’re using other themes, you’ll see promotions appear on the screen..
Samsung has the nerve to describe this as a pilot program that’s part of their commitment of “enhancing every day value for our home appliance customers.” Worse, there’s no real way to opt out. You can dismiss an ad so the same one doesn’t pop up again, but you can’t turn them off entirely. Not without disconnecting the fridge from the internet. Which of course, defeats the purpose of having a smart fridge in the first place.
When Every Screen Becomes an Ad Space
Samsung doesn’t want to sell you a fridge. They want to sell you ads for all eternity. Their business model looks a lot like what’s happened with smart TVs. First, you pay for the hardware, then companies monetize the screen through endless ads and “curated content.”
It’s easy to see why this appeals to Samsung. Recurring revenue is more attractive than one-time sales, especially when appliance prices are already high. From a marketer’s perspective, what’s better than a giant screen that sits in the middle of the most-trafficked room in the house? The fridge becomes an always-on ad space, quietly pumping them out in the background.
Consumers Don’t Want Ads at Home
I don’t know when the day will come when these corporations realize most people detest ads. That day can’t come soon enough. There’s a reason why people will shell out $18 for an ad free experience on Netflix. Appliances were one of the last ad-free zones in the home, and now Samsung is trying to ruin that.
I know it’s been debated for years that Samsung has lost its knack for innovation but this is a new low.
When my Mom heard the news, she went on a five minute rant on how Samsung products were off the table for purchase. We used to be fans of their Galaxy phones but they’ve crossed a line with this one. What are they doing with all the data they are collecting? This is corporate greed taken too far. Trust = broken.
The Smart Home Is Becoming a Billboard
How much of our daily lives are companies allowed to monetize? If your kitchen appliance is fair game for ads, what’s next? The washing machine? The microwave? Your coffee maker serving up “sponsored brew recommendations”?
Consumers have to decide if they’re comfortable living in homes that double as billboards. Because the more we accept this crap like this, the more our lives will be colonized by ads.
