In a previous report, we discussed the announcement of a new TV brand that is offering up a free 55-inch 4K TV to consumers that sign up at www.freetelly.com.
In order to qualify for a free Telly, applicants are required to submit their age, gender, address, purchasing behavior, brand preferences, and viewing habits. They must also agree to let their data be used so they can receive targeted ads.
Tip: As of the publication date of this article about 250,000 people have signed up to receive a free Telly TV. Reservations are still being accepted at freetelly.com.
Overview
To recap our previous report, the Telly is a 55-inch 4K UHD HDR TV.
- Viewers can watch anything on Telly, from cable or satellite TV to streaming apps via a provided plug-in 4K Android streaming stick, by connecting through one of three HDMI ports built into the television or through the built-in TV tuner.
Tip: In addition to the provided streaming stick, users can also connect another streaming device of their choice such as Roku, Amazon Fire Stick, Apple TV, and more to take maximum control over their TV viewing experience.
- Built-in camera for video calling and interactive gaming and fitness.
- A built-in soundbar is included for audio.
How Telly offers this TV for free is that it features both a main and second screen.
- The main screen, which takes up most of the real estate, is where you watch movies and shows.
- The second screen runs the width of the set below the main TV screen. The purpose of the second screen is to display ads that relate to what is showing on the main screen, as well as info such as weather, news headlines, and sports scores.
As listed in our previous report, other Telly TV features include:
TV/Movie Viewing
Games
Music Playback
Fitness
Video Calling
Voice Assistant
The Fine Print
Now that Telly has started to ship, more details on the actual Terms of Service have been revealed. Telly has stated that a major part of the user agreement is that the Telly owner must not “cover or otherwise attempt to disable” the second screen.
If a user disables or physically blocs the second screen, they will be violating the Telly service agreement and could potentially face a stiff fine. We’re not entirely sure how they will enforce that but I suppose we will find out.
Reminder: The second screen with Telly’s ads is displayed. The presence of those ads is the reason the TV is free.
Here are the highlights from Telly’s Terms of Service page that goes into more detail: freetelly.com/terms-of-service
Users can’t make physical modifications to Telly or attach peripheral devices not approved by Telly (traditional sources are fine; antenna, cable, satellite, DVD/Blu-ray, game console, and media streamers).
- Any attempt to open Telly’s cabinet will be deemed an unauthorized modification.
- Telly must be used as the primary television in your household
- Telly must be connected to Wi-Fi and the internet at all times.
- Users can’t use any software on your Wi-Fi network that with advertising blocking capability.
According to Telly CSO Dallas Lawrence: “Consumers who violate our terms and conditions and refuse to return the Telly will be charged the $1,000 value of the television.”
Of course, the obvious question is how some parts of the terms of service can even be enforced.
I suppose there is a sensor that detects this; whether the second screen is being blocked from view, or if it has somehow been turned off.
As for room location, even though Telly has a built-in camera, there is no way this can be determined. How can the company determine what is the main living space in your home and apartment owners may only have one area to mount a TV.
We suspect Telly will know how many hours of usage that TV gets and keep tabs on users in that manner.
Tip: Telly includes a sensor that detects how many people are sitting in front of the TV (Telly has a built-in HD Camera).
However, unless there is a way to compare the hours viewed with another TV located in a living room, the enforcement of this seems to be open to dispute.
Perhaps Telly will have to establish some baseline of “hours viewed” per specific time period (day, week, month) to satisfy its requirements.
It will be interesting to see how Telly’s execution of its Terms of Service actually works out in the real world. We haven’t heard the last of this yet.
Do you think Telly’s “Free TV” is worth it? – Comment Below and tell us what you think. Also, if you receive a Telly let us know.
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David
July 29, 2023 at 1:31 am
The non-return fee at first was $500 but ended up being $1000. There is no mention of warranty or what happens if it breaks down. How long is the contract for. If after 5-10 years and it is seriously out-of-date, do you still have to pay to return it or pay $1000? Does the company plan to replace it when the tv is technologically deficient or broadcast standard are changed? Too many unanswered questions. I canceled my account. I wonder how many of the initial 250,000 have also canceled.
John Albrecht
September 7, 2023 at 12:54 am
I think it’s a great business model because we all know you get ads on every device you own already. So put yourself in the advertisers shoe’s you would be all in on this project. So I’m all in just like the advertisers.Its just that their bill is alot higher then ours. Your private information you say you don’t want to give out “they know who we are already” plus we’re to complex as humans to get any type of tendacys out of us we’re all over the place. I’m 60 BTW Male so I already have them confused as to why I would need this TV (I have 4 TVs allredy)…Its FREE to me but still doesn’t answer their question WHY? I will let you know when I get mine.
Turn on the TELLY!!!!