What’s she wearing? AI-powered TVs to offer instant shopping insights

SK Broadband's IPTV platform, Btv, will soon provide personalized recommendations based on users' data, including from Tmap and 11Street.

SK Broadband's Vice President, Kim Seong-soo, explains the new AI-powered functions of its internet protocol television (IPTV) platform Btv at a press event in the company's office building in Jung District, central Seoul, on Wednesday. [SK BROADBAND]

Internet TVs in Korea are receiving their first-ever AI makeover.

SK Broadband, an internet service provider affiliated with SK Telecom, rolled out a series of AI-powered functions on its internet protocol television (IPTV) platform Btv on Wednesday, hoping to lock in users by providing a hyper-personalized content experience.

It goes beyond merely recommending content from users' viewing history, providing tailored information based on users' personal data from its affiliated services — navigation service Tmap and ecommerce platform 11Street.

For instance, if a user utilizes Tmap on a golf course and later turns on Btv, it will recommend golf-related documentaries or golf accessories sold on 11Street.

“The IPTV market has grown rapidly over the years but such growth has stagnated as users watch less TV,” said SK Broadband’s Kim Seong-soo, vice president and head of its customer division, at a press event to introduce Btv’s new AI-powered functions at its office building in Jung District, central Seoul, on Wednesday.

“We need fresh momentum and decided to integrate AI into our services that can automatically recognize the user and provide the most adequate, necessary information based on our data.”

AI-backed Btv can also automatically recognize users to transit to their private accounts. Once a set-top box is turned on, the user's smartphone is alerted and a Bluetooth signal containing the user's profile information is sent back to the system, telling it to switch to the user's personal account. The function is currently only available for Android users. Apple ioS users will be updated at a later date.

Btv also integrated ecommerce platforms into its IPTV service using AI, a function dubbed “AI Shopping.”

For video-on-demand content such as a television series, a user can immediately know the clothing brands and accessories that a celebrity or TV personality is wearing, recognized through AI. Once a user hits a stop button, a QR Code appears that directly links them to the brand site. It also recommends similar but cheaper options, linking them to ecommerce platforms such as 11Street and Lotte On.

SK Broadband also plans to roll out kid-friendly and senior-friendly services next year on Btv by integrating SK Telecom’s AI assistant A. and ChatGPT.

Some of the services hinted at Wednesday’s event included English language tutoring for children, where AI-powered animated characters engage with children in natural conversations in English.

Another was a psychological program that assesses a child’s mental condition by analyzing their voice tones and expressions.

Both services will roll out by the first half of next year.

BY LEE JAE-LIM [lee.jaelim@joongang.co.kr]