After staying away from OLED TVs for years, Samsung returned to the OLED TV segment with the launch of the S95B QD-OLED TV last year. Last week at CES, the company unveiled its second-generation QD-OLED TV with up to 2,000 nits peak brightness and a 144Hz refresh rate. However, the OLED TV segment is about to get a lot of action, and the South Korean firm will face intense competition.
Roku unveiled its own TV lineup at CES 2023, featuring five TV models. In addition, the media streaming firm unveiled its reference OLED TV design, featuring “inky black levels, outstanding contrast, highly saturated colors, and more.” While the company won't release a Roku-branded OLED TV of its own, the reference design can be licensed by any of its clients, including Caixun, Classé, Definitive Technology, Hisense, JVC, Marantz, Philips, Polk Audio, Sound United, TCL, and Walmart, to make OLED TVs. So, they don't need to spend much on R&D, design, or software.
Roku OS has among the highest smart TV OS market share in the US, and if Chinese brands use Roku's OLED TV reference design, both LG and Samsung may face fierce competition in the segment. These Roku clients usually launch affordable or value-for-money TVs, and if the OLED panel is good enough, most people might not see the need to choose LG's OLED or Samsung's QD-OLED TVs that cost upwards of $1,000.
Samsung has been focusing more on selling a higher number of premium TVs over the past few years to stay away from the cut-throat pricing game in the affordable segment. So, the company launched premium Mini-LED-based TVs and lifestyle TVs such as The Frame, The Serif, The Sero, and The Terrace.
