The Nvidia Shield TV, an Android TV media player, may get advertising on its home screen in the future. A screenshot of an Android TV homescreen with advertising appeared on the Play Store page of the Nvidia Games app. That app only runs on Shield devices.
The screenshot shows an Android TV homescreen, running on an Nvidia Shield, with the ad. However, the picture is no longer on the Play Store page, but it was still when 9to5Google rang the bell at the end of last week. The site reached out to Nvidia for a response, but they had no comment.
The advertising on Android TV takes the form of recommended movies and series to watch. They are at the very top of the home screen and cannot be removed, while the rest of the screen can be set up as desired. The media that come along with those recommendations may be behind the paywall of a service that the user does not have in-house, such as Disney+ or Amazon Prime Video.
The ad was announced in August of last year. Google states that it wants to help users with suggestions for what to watch on the platform. Users can also easily watch a teaser or trailer from the media from the recommendation. Since the ad was announced, it appeared that the Shield TV was exempt, but this screenshot may be the signal that that exception is about to end. The Nvidia Shield TV has been available since 2015 and received new versions in 2017 and 2019. Recommended prices for the current two models are 160 and 219 euros.
Image: Nvidia on the Google Play Store, via 9to5Google