LG Ads rolls out new River OS for smart TVs

LG Ads, a TV data company formerly known as Alphonso, is rolling out River OS, a new smart TV platform which it said provides personalization and voice-control features at affordable price points.

LG Ads said it has lined up multiple OEM partners and plans to ship River OS-powered smart TVs in India by the end of 2021 and in the U.S. and elsewhere in 2022. The company said major content streaming services and apps will be available on River OS-powered TVs. Content partners and brand advertisers will have access to interactive native ad formats like home screen takeovers and native ads will let viewers click through the ad units to trailers, videos, microsites and other experiences.

LG Ads said River OS will use natural language processing and machine learning to understand who is watching TV and deliver recommendations to each individual in the household. Universal content recommendations and program listings will be served up in a personalized home page rendered for the specific person watching TV.

RELATED: LG buys stake in TV data firm Alphonso for $80M

Raghu Kodige, co-founder and CEO of LG Ads, said River OS was built to let his company’s OEM partners offer consumers a high-end TV experience at low consumer price points.

“River OS-enabled TVs will expand the demographic pool for LG Ads targeting by reaching a broader set of consumers in all markets, relative to the more luxury-minded LG Ads consumer,” he said.

River OS is promising to offer large volumes of connected TV video advertising. However, given the phased rollout, inventory will be moderate as the platform scales, Kodige said.

LG currently develops and deploys the webOS platform for its branded smart TVs. The company said in February that it planned to extend webOS availability to third-party smart TV makers.

Earlier this year, LG invested nearly $80 million for a controlling stake in Alphonso, which it later renamed LG Ads.

“Our investment in Alphonso is a key component of our digital transformation strategy focusing on AI, big data and cloud to fundamentally change how consumers interact with their devices,” said Park Hyoung-sei, president of the LG Home Entertainment Company, in a statement. “With Alphonso’s TV data analysis capabilities, LG will be able to better fulfill consumers’ needs by providing even more customized services and content to consumers. We are proud to welcome Alphonso to the LG family.”