November 21, 2024

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Visitors explore Samsung Tizen OS at the CES 2024 in January in Las Vegas. (Samsung Electronics)

Samsung Electronics has been enhancing the reach of its proprietary Tizen operating system by incorporating artificial intelligence capabilities.

According to Samsung Newsroom on Thursday, Tizen has been deployed in approximately 270 million units of Samsung smart TVs released as of the end of last year.

Considering that it was installed in about 50 million units in 2015, it recorded a growth rate of about 440 percent.

“Samsung Tizen is preparing for another leap forward by evolving into an on-device platform to provide users with a special experience," a Samsung Electronics official said.

Before adopting Tizen in 2015, Samsung used the Orsay OS. While both Orsay and Tizen are in-house platforms, they differ in terms of openness.

Orsay primarily focused on traditional TV-based services related to broadcasting and external inputs. In contrast, Tizen is an open-source platform that facilitates easy expansion.

Additionally, while Orsay handles one operation at a time, Tizen operates on a multi-process basis, allowing simultaneous handling of multiple tasks and individualized troubleshooting.

“The primary goal of introducing Tizen was to expand the ecosystem by attracting various external developers,” said Byun Kwang-seop, a person in charge of developing Orsay.

The initial Tizen development team emphasized maximizing the advantages of an open platform and improving development productivity through standardized interfaces and the adoption of standard technologies.

By applying standard technologies, Tizen increased accessibility for content providers compared to the closed Orsay platform. Samsung smart TVs now support not only their own services but also third-party apps like Netflix, Spotify and Apple TV.

Even after TV sales, Tizen continues to play a revenue-generating role through Smart TV services.

“Consumer experiences, such as Samsung TV Plus and Gaming Hub, along with advertising revenue, significantly contribute to our revenue. To enhance competitiveness, we focus on platform improvements and expanding our licensed product lineup,” said Jung Sung-yong, a member of the Tizen development team.

Samsung plans to leverage Tizen’s platform, which spans various devices, to enhance AI capabilities and maximize consumer experiences.

Tizen is not only present in smart TVs and monitors but also embedded in beam projectors and business-to-business signage products, providing context-aware experiences across different devices.

At the CES 2024, the world’s largest tech trade show held in January in Las Vegas, the AI companion robot, Ballie, also featured Tizen integration.

"By leveraging edge technology, we can utilize the high-performance computing resources embedded within the Ballie product. This exemplifies Tizen’s central role in enabling seamless AI experiences," Jung said.

By Jie Ye-eun (yeeun@heraldcorp.com)