Roku Patent Envisions Inserting Ads During Third-Party Device Downtime
• Roku filed a patent to display ads on its smart TVs when an HDMI-connected third-party device like a game console goes idle • It would detect idleness by monitoring audio, video frames, etc. to know when a device has paused content • This is one of many ways Roku tries to integrate ads beyond the Roku Channel to generate revenue • Roku sells hardware at a loss and makes money from its advertising business instead • The concept seems intrusive, like serving ads even if viewers pay for ad-free services on connected devices