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Highlights taken by ZDNET
- Smart TVs track viewing habits with ACR technology.
- The collected data fuels billions in targeted advertising.
- Disabling ACR protects privacy but requires effort.
Many modern smart TVs come with a silent partner: Automatic Content Recognition (ACR). This ad tracking technology monitors everything on your screen in real time, logging your viewing history into a database to create an accurate profile of your habits. It’s the engine behind those creepy looking ads — and it’s likely to start as soon as you press the power button.
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What motivates this invasive technology? Money. Companies buy and sell tracking data collected from your search histories and media preferences to fine-tune targeted ad campaigns. According to Yahoo Finance, the smart TV ad market is expected to reach $691 billion by 2033, up from $255 billion by 2024.
And if you want to break the cycle, it’s as easy as removing a few menu options.
How does ACR work?
To understand how ACR works, imagine a continuous, real-time service like Shazam running in the background while your TV is on. It identifies the content displayed on your screen, including programs from cable TV boxes, streaming services, or game consoles. ACR does this by capturing continuous screenshots and cross-referencing them with a large database of media content and advertisements.
According to The Markup, the ACR can capture and display up to 7,200 images per hour, or about two images per second. This extensive tracking provides valuable insights for advertisers and content distributors, revealing the connection between the personal information of viewers and the content they like. By “personal information,” I mean email addresses, IP addresses — even your street address.
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By understanding what viewers are watching and engaging with, marketers can make decisions about content recommendations to create targeted ad placements. They can also track ads that lead to purchases.
Because ACR works secretly in the background, many of us are not even aware of its active presence each time we enjoy our favorite shows. Opting out of ACR is complex and sometimes challenging. Navigating your TV settings may take a few clicks to better protect your privacy.
If you, like me, find this feature annoying or unappealing, you can disable it on your smart TV. It may take some patience, but below is a How-To List of five major brands that show how to close ACR.
How to turn off ACR on smart TV
- Press the button Home button on your remote control.
- Scroll left to access the sidebar menu.
- From the sidebar menu, select Privacy Options option.
- Select the Terms and Conditions, Privacy Policy option.
- Make sure the check box for Viewing Information Services it is not tested. This will disable ACR and any related ad targeting.
- Select the OK option at the bottom of the screen to confirm your changes.
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- Press the button Home button on your remote control to access the home screen.
- Press the button Settings button on your remote control.
- In the settings side menu, select the Settings option.
- Navigate to and select the General option.
- From the General menu, select The program.
- Select Additional Settings.
- In Advanced Settings, find and change the shutdown Live Plus option.
LG also allows you to limit ad tracking, which can be found in Additional Settings.
- In the More Settings menu, select Advertisement.
- change to Limit AD tracking option.
You can also turn off local promotions and content recommendations:
- In the More Settings menu, select Home Settings.
- Uncheck i Home Promotion option.
- Uncheck i Content recommendation option.
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- Press the button Home button on your remote control to access the main menu.
- Navigate and select Settings.
- Select Initial Setup.
- Scroll down and select Samba Interactive TV.
- Select Disable it to close Samba TV, which is Sony ACR technology.
Sony also allows for enhanced privacy by disabling ad personalization:
- Go to Settings.
- Select About.
- Select Advertisements.
- Shut up Personalization of Ads.
As an additional step, you can completely disable the Samba Services Manager, which is embedded in the firmware of some Sony Bravia TVs as a third-party interactive application.
- Go to Settings.
- Select Applications.
- Select Samba Services Manager.
- Select Clear the cache.
- Select Force Stop.
- Finally, choose Disable it.
If your Sony TV is running Android TV, you should also turn off Chromecast data collection:
- Open the Google Home app on your smartphone.
- Tap that The menu icon.
- Select your TV from the list of devices.
- Tap the three dots in the upper right corner.
- Select Settings.
- Shut up Submit Chromecast device usage data and streaming reports.
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- Press the button Home button on your remote control to access the main menu.
- Navigate and select Settings.
- Select The program.
- Select Privacy.
- Look for the option called Smart TV experience, Viewing Information Servicesor something similar.
- Toggle this option to off to disable ACR.
To disable personalized ads and opt out of content recommendations:
- In the Privacy menu, look for an option like it Ad tracking or Interest-Based Ads.
- Turn off this option.
- Look for options related to content recommendations or personalized content.
- Disable these features if you don’t want the TV to suggest content based on your viewing habits.
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- Press the button Home button on your TCL TV remote control.
- Navigate and select Settings in the main menu.
- Scroll down and select the Privacy option.
- look for Smart TV experience and select it.
- Uncheck or change the labeled option Use Information from the TV input.
Also: Is your Roku TV checking you out? It does happen, but here’s how you can easily stop it
For more privacy, TCL TVs offer several additional options, all of which can be found at Privacy menu:
- Select Advertising.
- Select Limit ad tracking.
- Again, choose Advertising.
- Unmark Personalized ads.
- Now, still in the Privacy menu, select it Microphone.
- Fix it Access to station microphones again Channel Permissions as you wish.
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- Press the settings button on the remote control.
- Navigate to Favorites.
- Select Privacy Settings.
- Convert Automatic Content Recognition is turned off.
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One last piece of advice
Keep in mind that while these steps will greatly reduce data collection, they may also limit some of your TV’s smart features. Also, it’s a good idea to check these settings periodically to make sure they stay as you set them up. Especially after a software update, your updated settings can sometimes revert to their default state.
Also: How to clear your TV cache (and why you shouldn’t wait to do it)
The driving force behind targeted advertising on smart TVs is ACR technology, and its inclusion speaks volumes for manufacturers’ focus on monetizing user data rather than putting consumers’ interests first.
For many of us, ACR offers few tangible benefits, while the real-time sharing of our viewing habits and preferences exposes us to potential privacy risks. By disabling ACR, you can help keep your data to yourself and enjoy viewing with more peace of mind.
