Movie Recommendations and Drama Information Provided by A.Dot
'AI Smart Remote' App Launching in Q4 This Year
Features Include Actor-Worn Products and Home Shopping Item Introductions
SK Telecom's artificial intelligence (AI) personal assistant, ‘A.Dot’, will also be applied to paid broadcasting. Users will be able to receive content recommendations and ask questions by conversing with the AI on their TV, eliminating the need to search separately on their smartphones. SK Broadband’s IPTV service, ‘B tv’, will enable high-quality video and audio support with the A.Dot service and AI technology applied.
On the 26th, SK Broadband held a press conference at its headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, unveiling the B tv A.Dot service and the set-top box equipped with on-device AI functionality, ‘AI 4 Vision’. Kim Seong-su, head of SK Broadband’s Customer Business Division, explained, "The combination of A.Dot and B tv will greatly enhance the convenience and satisfaction that customers experience."
Kim Seong-su, Head of Business Division at SK Broadband, is introducing the B tv A.Dot service. [Photo by SK Broadband]
Customers can press the microphone button on the remote control and say "A.Dot" or select the A.Dot icon in the top menu of B tv to start a conversation. For example, if a user asks, "I heard there’s a drama starring actor Jung Hae-in these days, what is it?" the A.Dot service responds, "The drama title is ‘Mom’s Friend’s Son’." Additionally, if the user asks, "How are people reacting?" or "What’s the storyline?" A.Dot provides appropriate answers.
The B tv A.Dot service offers various information about content, including basic details such as the director, cast, and plot, as well as summaries of viewer reviews, all delivered via voice. If the user wishes, it also introduces content available on other platforms like the latest released movies, YouTube, and Netflix. SK Broadband expressed its ambition to open an era where TVs naturally converse with users, understanding their intentions as if talking with friends or experts through AI.
Until now, B tv provided AI services based on ‘NUGU’, but with the advancement to A.Dot, it can better understand customer intentions.
At the press conference, when asked to "Find a movie similar to Harry Potter," the existing NUGU did not understand the term ‘similar’ and simply presented the Harry Potter series. However, after introducing A.Dot, which is based on various large language models (LLMs), it recommended several fantasy movies similar to Harry Potter.
In an open beta test conducted in August with 1,200 participants, 85% expressed satisfaction, and 88% indicated their intention to continue using the service. The B tv A.Dot service is available on the AI 4 Vision and Smart3 set-top boxes, with plans to expand the service coverage. From this morning, about 30% of B tv users will be able to use the A.Dot service through a set-top box update.
Kim said, "The B tv A.Dot service clearly understands the intent and context of what customers say and provides optimal results via voice. It will offer customers the feeling of AI assistance as if a media expert is guiding them."
The AI 4 Vision is equipped with a neural processing unit (NPU) chip, enabling on-device AI functions without connecting to the cloud. Additionally, the AI analyzes the audio and video contrast and color of content to optimize sound and picture quality. The AI 4 Vision includes a 13-megapixel camera supporting 4K, providing motion games recognizing customer movements, pet monitoring, exercise, and video calls.
In the fourth quarter of this year, an ‘AI Smart Remote’ application will be launched. This service allows users to use A.Dot without a remote control and view necessary information on their smartphones tailored to the situation before and after watching content. For example, when watching VOD, it provides information about characters appearing at specific times or products they are wearing. When watching home shopping broadcasts, it offers product information and order links, helping users quickly check products on mobile and place orders immediately. The recently launched ‘B tv All+’ offers various live channels and about 200,000 VOD titles without the need to subscribe to each monthly package separately.
Kim stated, "The combination of AI and media helps better understand customers and allows them to instantly experience what they want. We will continue to satisfy customer needs with B tv equipped with A.Dot, AI set-top boxes, and various AI services, and introduce diverse AI technologies and services on B tv in the future."
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