Samsung users in the United States were left scratching their heads after a notification on Family Hub refrigerators sparked concerns that Samsung’s free streaming TV service, Samsung TV Plus, could be shutting down in the country. The notification, which many Family Hub fridge owners reported receiving, stated: “After the SW update scheduled for June 2024, Samsung TV Plus will only be available within the Mexican territories.”
This led to widespread speculation and discussion across social media, Reddit, and Samsung user communities about whether Samsung TV Plus would soon be discontinued for users in the United States. However, the situation became murkier when the official Samsung TV Plus account on X (formerly Twitter) appeared to dismiss the notification as an error in response to a user’s query.
So what’s really going on with Samsung TV Plus? Here’s a breakdown of what we know so far:
The notification and user speculation
The notification stating Samsung TV Plus would only be available in Mexico after a June 2024 software update was seemingly delivered to an unknown number of Samsung Family Hub refrigerator owners across the US.
While surprising, it’s possible the notification could have been triggered by an erroneous software update or other technical glitch specific to the Family Hub platform.
As of now, speculation centers around the potential shutdown being limited only to the Samsung TV Plus app on Family Hub refrigerator models, rather than the service being discontinued entirely across the company’s smart TV and mobile device lineups. However, nothing has been officially confirmed regarding which Samsung products or territories may be affected.
Samsung’s response
Samsung’s denial that they are “going anywhere” via their official TV Plus X (Twitter) account seems to indicate the service will continue operating normally in the US after June 2024. “Oops! You can disregard that Family Hub notification. This was an error – we’re not going anywhere!” the @SamsungTVPlus account posted. However, the vague wording leaves some ambiguity around whether this applies to all Samsung devices and use cases, or just the core TV Plus service offering.
So while Samsung has pushed back against shutdown notification, there are still unclear implications this notification could have for TV Plus availability and compatibility across the company’s product ecosystem. We might have to wait for an official statement from Samsung directly (rather than the TV Plus account), before concluding anything.
What can users do?
As of now, all Samsung TV Plus users in the US can likely continue watching the service as normal. However, Samsung has not provided full clarification around the situation.
Users, especially those with Family Hub refrigerators, should keep an eye out for any additional official communication from Samsung regarding updates or changes to TV Plus support across its various products and markets. Unless Samsung provides more decisive confirmation otherwise, the service’s long-term fate in the US remains somewhat uncertain based on this strange notification snafu.
Himanshu Arora
256 Posts
I have been writing tech-focused articles since 2010. In my around 15 years of experience so far, I have written for many leading publications, including Computerworld, GSMArena, TechSpot, HowtoForge, LinuxJournal, and MakeTechEasier to name a few. I also co-founded PiunikaWeb, which went on to become a huge success within 5 years of its inception. Here at TechIssuesToday, I aim to offer you helpful information in a way that you won't find anywhere else easily.
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