Samsung SA and News24 have partnered to develop a smart TV application that lets users access breaking news from their television sets.
According to the electronics company, the Samsung Smart TV News24 application can be accessed from Samsung smart TVs in the mid-range (D5500) and upwards segment.
Samsung says the application consists of a scroll news ticker, which displays breaking news at the bottom of the screen. Users can also open stories or browse the latest content in full-screen mode.
Corrie Labuschagne, product and marketing manager for TVs at Samsung SA, says Samsung hopes to release a minimum of five additional locally developed TV applications this year.
Ronald Bach, product manager at News24, believes Internet-connected TV is “the next big thing”. Steven Ambrose, Strategy Worx MD, also sees this as a major trend in home entertainment, with manufacturers pushing hard in this arena.
Ambrose argues that being able to access local news over the Internet on television is more attractive to consumers than merely browsing news on the Internet. He adds that, especially in SA, people still spend more time watching TV than they spend online.
Ambrose says while the market for the application is limited - because a good home wireless network or fixed network is required for adequate performance - he adds it will grow over the next few years as more people access content and interact online.
“This current app is more about positioning and testing out the ecosystem than a big commercial push into Web TV,” says Ambrose.
The app shows forward thinking on the part of News 24 and Samsung, which have taken up this space early on, says Ambrose. He doesn't expect other manufacturers to follow yet. Ambrose explains that Samsung has the most developed ecosystem, and while LG and Sony have app ecosystems, they are not prioritising SA in the same way.
Samsung says the application is available for free from the Samsung Apps Store via the Smart TV UI.
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