Samsung’s smart TVs will run Tizen software

SEOUL, Korea, Republic Of – Samsung Electronics Co. said its Internet-connected televisions will this year use its internally developed operating system known as Tizen, in the company’s latest attempt to boost its software power.

The company said Friday that the first Tizen-equipped smart TVs will be unveiled next week at a trade show in Las Vegas. It will be Samsung biggest use yet of Tizen in its mainstay products.

The launch of smartphones using Tizen was postponed several times last year in a setback to Samsung’s efforts to reduce its reliance on Android for its mobile devices. Instead, it used Tizen in the Gear series of smartwatches and a camera, but the market reception for these early Tizen products was lukewarm. Analysts expect Samsung to use Tizen for low-cost mobile devices sold in emerging markets such as India.

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The company said the adoption of the Tizen OS in televisions will allow a better collaboration with developers and other partners to provide more content to view on televisions.

Samsung said Tizen-based televisions will synchronize with Samsung mobile devices to search and share content between phones and televisions. It will also serve as a centre for Internet-connected homes, known as smart home, where residents can remotely control electronics and lighting.

Despite being the world’s largest supplier of televisions and mobile phones, Samsung’s software capabilities have been a weak spot.

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Many of Samsung’s software services and apps have been short-lived even though they were often delivered to consumers pre-installed in Samsung mobile phones. Samsung’s mobile messenger app, ChatOn, will be the latest Samsung service to die. ChatOn is scheduled to be shut down next month.

In July, Samsung said it had postponed the Russian launch of a Tizen-powered phone. The company said Friday it is still developing smartphones using the operating system but declined to disclose its launch plan.