Too Much TV: Your TV Talking Points For Thursday, October 3rd, 2024

A new way to gaslight your parents through their televisions.

Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Thursday, October 3rd, 2024:

THE CHALLENGES OF COVERING SO MANY TV PLATFORMS
One of the most challenging parts of my job is covering the various platforms and smart TV operating systems trying to compete with Roku and Fire TV. For instance, unless you own a Samsung TV, it's nearly impossible to keep on top of what is available on its free streaming platform Samsung TV Plus. 

But I did receive a press release today that I thought was worth highlighting:

Samsung TV Plus is going all-in on one of the hottest content categories, with the arrival of nearly 4,000 hours of free-to-stream Korean shows and movies now available on-demand. With audiences around the world falling in love with the exhilarating world of Korean culture and entertainment, Samsung TV Plus is proud to offer viewers access to premium titles across a variety of genres like K-Dramas, K-Crime, K-Thrillers, and K-Romance, just to name a few.

With today’s arrival of new K-Content from Korea’s most acclaimed production companies CJ ENM and NEW ID and distribution company KT Alpha, Samsung TV Plus is now one of the largest providers of Korean scripted and unscripted TV series, and movies in the U.S.

Samsung TV Plus and CJ ENM have also teamed up to bring unscripted, never before seen programs to the U.S., which includes popular food entertainment shows such as The Genius Paik and Three Meals a Day, along with travel shows House on Wheels and Youn’s Kitchen. And for the movie enthusiasts, Samsung TV Plus is now home to NEW ID and KT Alpha’s largest K-Movie offering in the U.S., with hit titles like NEW ID’s award-winning Korean films Burning, starring Steven Yeun of Beef, A Taxi Driver, starring Kang-ho Song of the award-winning global blockbuster, Parasite, and Korean blockbuster hit, Assassination, starring Lee Jung-jae, Emmy-winning actor of Squid Game. Fans can also enjoy popular movies from KT Alpha such as Joint Security Area, Oh! Brothers, The President’s Last Bang, and 26 Years.

This is a massive content deal and it occurs to me that these are titles that would be worth me covering in some form. But I don't think I can justify buying a Samsung TV I don't need in order to do so. Likewise, I'm not likely to buy a Vizeo smart TV so that I can cover what's going on its Vizeo Watch Free+ platform.

SPEAKING OF SMART TV PLATFORMS
The essential Janko Roettgers newsletter Lowpass has a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at how Roku built its branded television business with Chinese TV manufacturers Hisense and TCL:

Building a new kind of streaming TV also required other adjustments for an industry that treated apps and software as an add-on. “You build the TV, and then you just put another board in there with the smarts on it,” said Larson about the common practice at the time. That mindset also led manufacturers to not really worry about upgradeability. “If you shipped the TV with bugs, it was going to have bugs in there forever,” he said. Roku instead downloaded a software update as soon as a device was first connected to the internet.

“Changing the mindset of how product goes to market was really important for manufacturers,” Larson said. As was aligning on timelines. Roku was trying to perfect the user experience of its first-ever TV, while TCL had somewhat different priorities.

I MIGHT BE OLD, BUT I'M NOT THIS OLD
I am always amused by the ways that older Americans are sold technology (at a premium) that is really nothing but some old idea wrapped up in a glassy high-tech package. Like those $200 "free cable TV" devices that are basically just a slick-looking over-the-air broadcast antenna.

But this ad for Jubilee TV seems to be omnipresent on every online platform where older Americans and the people who love them congregate. And it's next-level crazy:

As it turns out, Jubilee TV is a combination of a smart TV streaming box, a remote control for seniors (with really big buttons) and an integrated app that allows family members to spy on their loved one with a remarkable set of features:

• Manage with ease: Simplify their TV experience by remotely changing channels, adjusting volume and troubleshooting TV issues.

• Check in without intruding: See when the TV is on and when your loved one is in the room and get notified if they don't follow usual routines.

• Connect face-to-face: Start video calls directly to your loved one's TV for a quick check-in or a longer chat.

• Share special moments: Send photos, videos and messages that appear right on their screen.

To be honest, I can see where some of this MIGHT be helpful in very specific situations. But I'm not sure anyone needs to know when a loved one's TV is on and whether or not they are in the room. Although I can see some hilarious ways to misuse the "share special moments" feature. And with this app, you could take "gaslighting your parents" to a whole new level.

Now all of this potential for bad-faith fun doesn't come cheap. Once you purchase the JubileeTV Hub and Remote ($199), to use the integrated app/surveillance system requires a subscription: $29 per month, $269 annually, or a $699 lifetime membership, which will likely last long after Jubilee TV has gone under. And if installation of Jubilee TV is too daunting, they offer a professional installation option, which apparently consists of connecting the hub to the home's wireless connection and plugging it into the TV's HDMI source. And for a low, low price of $99.

TWEET OF THE DAY

WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND TOMORROW

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3RD:
* Blue Box (Netflix)
* Dan Da Dan Series Premiere (Crunchyroll/Hulu/Netflix)
* DanMachi - Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon? (Hidive)
* Dateline: The Smoking Gun Series Premiere (Oxygen)
* Found Season Two Premiere (NBC)
* Good Bye, Dragon Life Series Premiere (Crunchyroll)
* Gremlins: The Wild Bunch Season Two Premiere (Max)
* Heartstopper Season Three Premiere (Netflix)
* Hold Your Breath (Hulu)
* House Of Spoils (Prime Video)
* Las Bravas F.C. (Max)
* Law & Order Season Twenty-Four Premiere (NBC)
* Law & Order: SVU Season Twenty-Six Premiere (NBC)
* Mecha-Ude: Mechanical Arms (Crunchyroll)
* Mountain Men Season Premiere (History)
* Negative Positive Angler (Crunchyroll)
* Reggaeton: The Sound That Conquered The World (Peacock)
* Rurouni Kenshin -Kyoto Disturbance (Crunchyroll)
* Salem's Lot (Max)
* Scrabble (The CW)
* Suspect (Britbox)
* The Bad Guys: Haunted Heist (Netflix)
* The Book Club Murders (LMN)
* The Legend Of Vox Machina Series Premiere (Prime Video)
* 365 Days To The Wedding (Crunchyroll)
* Trillion Game (Crunchyroll)
* Trivial Pursuit (The CW)
* Tyler Perry's Zatima Season Premiere (BET+)
* Velma: This Halloween Needs To Be More Special! (Max)

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 4TH:
* CTRL (Netflix)
* Curses! (APple TV+)
* Faceoff: Inside The NHL Series Premiere (Prime Video)
* Fat Joe Talks Series Premiere (Starz)
* Hannah Swensen Mysteries: A Sprinkle Of Deceit (Hallmark Movies Channel)
* HGTV Urban Oasis 2024 (HGTV)
* How I Attended An All-Guy's Mixer (Hidive)
* It's What Inside (Netflix)
* Life After Lockup Season Premiere (WE tv)
* Scare Tactics (Syfy)
* Scariest House In America Series Premiere (HGTV)
* Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online (Crunchyroll)
* The Charlie Puth Show Series Premiere (The Roku Channel)
* The Platform 2 (Netflix)
* The Proof Is Out There Season Premiere (History)
* The Stories Of Girls Who Couldn't Be Magicians Series Premiere (Crunchyroll)
* Tia Mowry: My Next Act Series Premiere (WE tv)
* V/H/S/Beyond (Shudder)

SEE YOU ON FRIDAY!