Diverse industries t’app’ing into Samsung Smart TV offerings

In 2010, Samsung was the first to launch a full range of SMART TVs in the region. In 2011, Samsung introduced a new era of home entertainment with the new D series of SMART TVs, the ultimate entertainment technology. Despite stiff competition in this segment, where outstanding and superbly-designed products make a huge impact on consumers’ purchasing decisions, Samsung was able to firmly establish its leadership. According to industry reports, Samsung secured a whopping 45 percent market share by the end of Q3 making Samsung the brand of choice for the Gulf. 

Samsung’s outstanding performance in the region and the fact that Samsung Smart TVs offer a range of over 1000 applications through their dedicated apps store, “Samsung Apps” gives companies throughout all industries an incentive to develop, launch and sustain an application. So now the company knows it wants an application, but where does it start? 

To begin with, the company needs to ask itself what kind of application it wants to develop and what the purpose is for developing the app. Will the application serve a business purpose? Will it be an addition to the company’s social media platforms? Or will the application interact with its users? Samsung techies advise that to develop a successful app, also dubbed ‘killer app’, companies must look at three main points: innovative idea; works on the latest technology; and serves a purpose. Applications such as Angry Birds is a live example of a killer app where the game notches up 200 million minutes of play time every day, which is close to the number of minutes viewers in the United States spend watching the average prime-time television program. 

“Producing applications that run on TVs or handsets is a great way to interact with your consumers. People nowadays are truly living a fast-paced lifestyle and applications that serve consumers are guaranteed to serve businesses as well. Developing apps will be a must for organizations to sustain their presence in the near future,” said Vinod Nair, General Manager, CTV Business, Samsung Gulf Electronics. “Samsung products are designed to make consumers’ lives ‘smarter’. With applications running on a user’s TV, he or she will be able to enjoy traditional programming as well as check off a few tasks from their lists all from the comfort of their couch. ” 

Now that the company has decided to launch an app, it’ll need to know what content the application will provide for its users. Content material is a crucial part of sustaining an application. The content needs to be relevant to users; provide interactive features; and offer an experience that can’t be found with traditional outlets.  

Recently, Samsung partnered with major government and private companies to launch locally tailored applications targeting existing users and potential new ones. The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), with Samsung, developed the region’s first business-solution application. DEWA’s application allows users to check their bills and access DEWA’s range of services. Samsung also partnered with the Arabian Radio Network (ARN) and Dubai Media Incorporated (DMI) to stream all of their radio and television channels for all Samsung Smart TV users to enjoy. “Video-on-demand has been the most popular reason for companies to develop Smart TV applications. Consumer behavior and attitudes are shifting, with viewers increasingly expecting to access content wherever and whenever they want. We believe that in the future every viewer will have access to 3D content in the comfort of their own living room through a SMART TV.” Nair added. 

Once the app is up and running, the company gets to relax and savor the final product. You can’t get too lazy though. Applications need to be sustained in order to keep the user interested in the application. At this time, companies need to ensure that they have content lined up and a calendar highlighting launches of new additions and features to the application. Just in case you feel a little overwhelmed, rest assured that the great people at Samsung will be on hand to share their expertise and provide support.