To protect retailers and prevent the illegal sale of TVs in the black market, Samsung has introduced a nifty feature for its Smart TVs. The South African division of the Korean giant recently announced a new Television Block function for all Samsung TVs. It lets retailers and authorized personnel remotely block the functionalities of TVs stolen from them.
Samsung announced the feature via an official blog post. The company says that the feature is to protect its retailers and prevent the “creation of secondary markets linked to the sale of illegal goods.” This will, in turn, prevent Samsung TV sets that are acquired through illegal means to function properly, once connected to the internet.
Getting into some details, the TV Block Function has been enabled for all Samsung TVs globally. It will be turned on by default. So, if a user tries to connect a Samsung Smart TV, which has been previously stolen or looted from the company’s warehouse, the serial number of the TV will be detected by the company’s server. It will then remotely block all the functionalities of the stolen piece.
However, if the company’s server mistakenly blocks the Samsung TV of a legitimate customer, they can share proof of purchase or a valid TV license to get their TV sets working again.
Samsung has activated the remote TV blocking feature for all the TV sets that were stolen from its Cato Ridge distribution center in the KwaZulu-Natal district of South Africa. So, when an operator of one of these TV sets connects it to the internet, the company will block the TV set remotely through its server.
“This technology can have a positive impact at this time, and will also be of use to both the industry and customers in the future,” said the Director of Consumer Electronics at Samsung, Mike Van Lier.
“As an organisation we acknowledge the critical role in giving our customers and client the peace of mind. Working together, we can overcome the impact of the unprecedented disruption to business, as experienced by many of us recently. We will continue to review the situation and will make adjustments as necessary to ensure business continuity for all,” Lier further added.
