It has become increasingly important for DirecTV to diversify revenue beyond satellite and Internet subscriptions. DirecTV had over 20 million subscribers in 2015; in 2024, streaming business publication Next TV, citing an anonymous source “close to the company,” reported that the AT&T-owned firm was down to about 11 million subscribers.
Simultaneously, the streaming industry—including streaming services and streaming software—has been increasingly relying on advertising to boost revenue. For some streaming service providers, increasing revenue through ads is starting to eclipse the pressure to do so through subscriber counts. Considering DirecTV's declining viewership and growing interest in streaming, finding more ways to sell ads seems like a natural progression.
With legacy pay TV providers already dealing with dwindling subscriptions, introducing new types of ads risks making DirecTV less appealing as well.
And it’s likely that things won’t end there.
“This, we can integrate across different places within the television,” [advertisement provider] Glance COO Mansi Jain told The Verge. "We are starting with the screensaver, but tomorrow… we can integrate it in the launcher of the TV."
I think we are seeing "late abandoner" costs with large groups of people. It's like paying high "early adopter" costs but instead of getting new technology for it, you get the comfort of hanging on to old stuff as its business model circles the drain and the executives piloting the sinking ships bleed the dwindling customer base for whatever they can.
I would be extremely uncomfortable seeing my face in adverts, even for products I use. I'm already uncomfortable with adverts using personal recommendations based on tracking my web history & habits.
I actively avoid those products in the future, and I can only see this alienating their marketing base further.
Marketers ruin everything. Marketers are liars. I've worked with marketing departments in every job I've ever had, and they're scum every time. Social media obsessed weirdos who can't do anything honest and authentic. Freaks.
DirecTV's screensavers will let a user create an AI avatar of themself by scanning a QR code on the screensaver. Afterward, they can use the avatar to browse through different AI content. Users will also reportedly be able to dress up their AI avatars, allowing Glance's screensaver to recommend real-life products to purchase by performing a reverse-image search.
Who is gonna even willingly do this? You're not creating a Mii to put into Wii Sports. It's just to advertise to you.
(the company Glance, mentioned in the quote, is the company providing the AI screensaver ad technology to DirecTV)
Bwahahahaha! I don't even watch TV any more. Every time I wind up at my parent's home I cannot believe the idiocy that's on the TV. Ball game is on? They've made sure it's impossible that a single frame of the feed does not show at least one advertisement, whether "splashed" over the video or covering every square inch of the location they're broadcasting.
"Television" is officially dead to me, but I get that a lot of people still watch it. What I don't understand is WHY they do.
40 Comments
antifa_ceo@lemmy.ml · 115 pts · 323d
Who wants this? What the fuck?
jqubed@lemmy.world · 53 pts · 323d
Shareholders and marketers want this.
TexasDrunk@lemmy.world · 24 pts · 323d
More people are moving to streaming services! Quick, let's make shit way worse!
Little_Urban_Achiever@piefed.social · 10 pts · 323d
More people are leaving our streaming service! Quick let's make it worse for the people who stayed!
TexasDrunk@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 322d
Where the fuck are they gonna go? Back to cable? Mwahahahaha
Twirls Dick Dastardly mustache
tym@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 322d
emerald@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 2 pts · 322d
FTFY
Zink@programming.dev · 3 pts · 322d
I think we are seeing "late abandoner" costs with large groups of people. It's like paying high "early adopter" costs but instead of getting new technology for it, you get the comfort of hanging on to old stuff as its business model circles the drain and the executives piloting the sinking ships bleed the dwindling customer base for whatever they can.
Little_Urban_Achiever@piefed.social · 2 pts · 322d
I think you're exactly right. It's the new generation of 'last in, first out'.
CocaineShrimp@sh.itjust.works · 58 pts · 323d
I feel a class action lawsuit incoming: "Advertisers using customers likeness in ads, without providing compensation"
Canconda@lemmy.ca · 26 pts · 323d
Ever notice how now a days you have to scroll through the whole TOS before blindly clicking AGREE?
Yea...
TachyonTele@piefed.social · 20 pts · 323d
TOS means nothing in court.
Canconda@lemmy.ca · 6 pts · 322d
Here's hoping American courts keep meaning anything.
TachyonTele@piefed.social · 2 pts · 322d
True. Knock on wood.
reddig33@lemmy.world · 38 pts · 323d
In case you were wondering how they would get a picture of the users face…
“DirecTV's screensavers will let a user create an AI avatar of themself by scanning a QR code on the screensaver”
etchinghillside@reddthat.com · 26 pts · 323d
The only good that can come from this is butt faces.
Sludgehammer@lemmy.world · 13 pts · 323d
Maybe that will be the data which finally breaks the image generators back.
ThePantser@sh.itjust.works · 5 pts · 323d
Cat anus faces
londos@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 323d
Or Bill Morrow, the CEO.
Ep1cFac3pa1m@lemmy.world · 20 pts · 323d
Thanks for this. I was imagining some dystopian requirement that you had to let them scan your face or pay an extra $10 a month or something.
SkaveRat@discuss.tchncs.de · 10 pts · 323d
Give them a month
AnUnusualRelic@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 322d
Ok. But why would anyone actually do that?
"Ooh I wish I was in that dishwasher ad"
troglodytis@lemmy.world · 30 pts · 323d
No. No, I don't think it will.
tinfoilhat@lemmy.ml · 28 pts · 323d
You can fuck right off.
NocturnalEngineer@lemmy.world · 25 pts · 323d
I don't get how this would ever be a good idea.
I would be extremely uncomfortable seeing my face in adverts, even for products I use. I'm already uncomfortable with adverts using personal recommendations based on tracking my web history & habits.
I actively avoid those products in the future, and I can only see this alienating their marketing base further.
bulwark@lemmy.world · 25 pts · 323d
I'd be more angry about this, but I just found out that DirecTV is still in business.
MrEff@lemmy.world · 24 pts · 323d
Oh, you mean the real reason there has been a push to get us to use face ID verification on every site that depends on ads?
hotdogcharmer@lemmy.zip · 20 pts · 323d
Marketers ruin everything. Marketers are liars. I've worked with marketing departments in every job I've ever had, and they're scum every time. Social media obsessed weirdos who can't do anything honest and authentic. Freaks.
ininewcrow@lemmy.ca · 17 pts · 323d
What better reason not to get DirecTV
Steve@startrek.website · 7 pts · 323d
Im surprised it still exists
VeryVito@lemmy.ml · 4 pts · 323d
I honestly didn’t know it still did.
rem26_art@fedia.io · 16 pts · 323d
Who is gonna even willingly do this? You're not creating a Mii to put into Wii Sports. It's just to advertise to you.
(the company Glance, mentioned in the quote, is the company providing the AI screensaver ad technology to DirecTV)
Empricorn@feddit.nl · 15 pts · 323d
Avoid DirecTV like the plague? I'm on it...
Ilovethebomb@sh.itjust.works · 8 pts · 323d
I'd cut the plug off the dongle doodad and then run it over if this happened to me.
Reygle@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 322d
Bwahahahaha! I don't even watch TV any more. Every time I wind up at my parent's home I cannot believe the idiocy that's on the TV. Ball game is on? They've made sure it's impossible that a single frame of the feed does not show at least one advertisement, whether "splashed" over the video or covering every square inch of the location they're broadcasting.
"Television" is officially dead to me, but I get that a lot of people still watch it. What I don't understand is WHY they do.
DarrinBrunner@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 323d
People with DirecTV will enjoy looking at my face, I guess?
frustrated_phagocytosis@fedia.io · 7 pts · 323d
My face? https://images.paramount.tech/uri/mgid:arc:imageassetref:shared.southpark.us.en:b4d7525e-94b1-424c-9a36-cd0bbd1183f5?quality=0.7&gen=ntrn
jordanlund@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 323d
Uploaded:
ramenshaman@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 323d
Could I just use my cat's face?
owenfromcanada@lemmy.ca · 3 pts · 323d
Your face, maybe. My face, no.
J92@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 322d
I was scrolling through my LG TV's settings not long ago and the amount of times it vampirically suggested I invite it onto my WiFi made me laugh.
No my friend, you're my dumb TV. My laptop already doesn't allow ads, so why would I need you to for a less navigable UI?