Samsung’s Tizen software is coming to other smart TVs, the company announced at its developer conference in San Francisco on Wednesday. The move is a sign of Samsung’s commitment to Tizen, which it has been developing in partnership with Intel since 2013. Samsung said that it plans to release a “major update” of Tizen for smartphones and smart TVs this year. Tizen is a competing platform to Android and iOS, and Samsung has been working to make it more popular among developers. The software can be used to control devices through apps, and it offers features that are not available on other platforms, such as support for voice commands and facial recognition. Samsung said that it plans to use Tizen in its upcoming Galaxy S8 smartphone as well as other devices. The company also plans to use the platform in its Gear VR headset and home appliances such as refrigerators and washing machines. ..
Samsung announced today that it has reached a deal with several other TV manufacturers to license the Tizen TV software, marking the first time that Samsung’s TV experience will be available on TVs sold by other companies. The license deal includes the Tizen platform and all available apps, as well as Samsung TV Plus, Universal Guide, and the Bixby voice assistant.
So, why does all this matter? Well, you might have more choices for software when it comes to your next smart TV, now that companies can theoretically sell TVs with identical hardware but several different software experiences. TCL has been doing that for a while — the company has primarily sold Roku-based TVs over the years, but recently expanded into Google TV models as well.
Samsung’s first manufacturing partners are Atmaca, HKC and Tempo, and Tizen is coming to TVs from brands like Bauhn, Linsar, RCA, Sunny, and Vispera. We’ll have to wait and see if any bigger brands are interested in Samsung’s software, like LG or TCL.
Source: Samsung
