The two Korean TV makers face challenges as platform competition intensifies amid record low profitability
Market share of TV operating systems in Europe based on shipments (Photo courtesy of Omdia)
Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are facing mounting challenges in their TV businesses, as platform competition intensifies in Europe, the world’s largest premium TV market. In addition to weakening hardware profitability due to aggressive low-pricing strategies by Chinese manufacturers, emerging platforms such as VIDAA, Titan, and TiVo are rapidly expanding their market shares in the TV operating system market, a sector the South Korean tech giants have cultivated as a strategic breakthrough. Consequently, the burden is mounting as price pressure is now joined by a fierce battle for platform leadership.
According to market research firm Omdia on April 27, emerging TV operating systems that had minimal presence until 2022 are expected to account for 28 percent of the European TV operating system market by 2030, up 7 percentage points from 21 percent last year. While Google TV currently leads the European market with a 32 percent share, emerging platforms including Hisense’s VIDAA, Philips’ Titan and TiVo, a subsidiary of Xperi, are rapidly gaining ground.
Omdia forecasts that combined shipments of TVs equipped with VIDAA, Titan and TiVo will reach 12.4 million units in Europe by 2028. Notably, Hisense’s VIDAA platform is expected to account for 58 percent of that total volume. By 2030, global shipments of VIDAA-equipped TVs are projected to reach 18.4 million units, including 7.5 million units in Europe. This suggests that the expansion of emerging platforms is not merely a software competition but is closely aligned with actual growth in TV shipments.
VIDAA, Titan and TiVo are penetrating the European market with Linux-based operating systems that run more lightly than Android-based platforms. These systems allow manufacturers to maintain adequate response speeds and screen transition quality without using expensive components, making it easier to secure price competitiveness. Their structure of sharing advertising revenue with manufacturers and the ability to place local broadcast and content on the home screen are also cited as strengths. Omdia said these factors are driving the expansion of emerging operating system market share in Europe.
For Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, the shift in the platform landscape is unwelcome. Europe is considered the world’s largest premium TV market, with a high proportion of sales for high-margin products such as OLED, ultra-large and high- definition TVs. The two companies have maintained strong market positions in the region by leveraging their premium brand competitiveness. However,
Chinese TV manufacturers have recently been aggressively expanding their market share by introducing mid- to low-priced premium products.
As it has become increasingly difficult to generate previous levels of profit from hardware alone even in the premium European market, Samsung and LG have been developing their operating systems as a new source of survival. This shift comes as the traditional business model of one-time TV sales is no longer sufficient to protect profitability.
LG Electronics’ MS division, which includes its TV business, recorded an operating loss of 750.9 billion won, or about $510.82 million, last year, while Samsung Electronics posted an annual operating loss of 200 billion won in its visual display and digital appliances business. As hardware profitability weakens, the importance of operating systems in generating post-sale revenue from advertising, content and data continues to inevitably grow.
In fact, both companies are accelerating efforts to expand OS-based businesses. LG Electronics’ webOS-based advertising and content business surpassed 1 trillion won in revenue in 2024, while the number of webOS-enabled devices worldwide exceeded 260 million as of January this year. Samsung Electronics also said monthly active users of Samsung TV Plus exceeded 100 million globally as of January. The strategy is to move beyond one-time TV sales and secure post-sale revenue through advertising and content.
However, as competition and regulation surrounding operating systems intensify simultaneously, the two companies’ strategies are becoming more challenging. Omdia forecasts that shipments of TVs equipped with Hisense’s VIDAA will surpass those of LG’s webOS-equipped TVs in Europe this year, indicating that the sales expansion of Chinese TV brands is extending beyond hardware market share to influence over operating systems.
As the influence of operating systems grows, regulatory pressure is also increasing. In March, European broadcasting industry groups called on the European Commission to designate TV operating systems such as Android TV, Amazon Fire OS and Samsung’s Tizen as gatekeepers under the Digital Markets Act.
Gatekeepers refer to major platform operators that effectively act as gateways between users and businesses. The European Union imposes stricter obligations on services that effectively control market access, such as search engines, app stores, operating systems, messaging platforms and smart TV platforms. While expanding operating systems has become inevitable amid weakening hardware profitability, greater platform influence also brings increased regulatory burdens.
An industry official said, “Samsung and LG have solidified their positions in Europe with premium TVs, but the competitive landscape is changing as Chinese companies strengthen not only price competitiveness but also their own operating systems. In the past, differentiation was possible through picture quality or brand, but now factors such as which platform is installed and what content is placed on the home screen are influencing TV purchases, making the situation more challenging for Samsung and LG.”
Kim Eun-jin
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