| Recurring |
one_organization, multiple_organization |
(a) The software failure incident of pop-up video adverts appearing on Samsung smart TVs has happened before within the same organization. In 2014, Samsung had partnered with Yahoo to create adverts and other "interactive experiences" for their smart TVs, which were said to be "opt-in." However, an update to the Samsung software powering the smart TVs in 2015 enabled the pop-up ads by default, causing interruptions for users [33470].
(b) The incident of pop-up video adverts appearing on smart TVs is not limited to Samsung alone. Panasonic smart TVs also display banner ads in some situations, and streaming box manufacturer Roku has pursued revenue share agreements with streaming services using its platform. Additionally, advertising companies like Yahoo and appTV offer solutions for placing promotions on smart TVs, indicating that the issue of ads on smart TVs is not unique to Samsung [33470]. |
| Phase (Design/Operation) |
design, operation |
(a) The software failure incident related to the design phase can be seen in the article where it mentions that an update to the Samsung software powering the smart TVs enabled the pop-up ads by default, causing the interruption of programs with advertisements [33470].
(b) The software failure incident related to the operation phase is evident in the article where users of Australia’s Foxtel streaming TV service reported a similar issue after updating the Samsung SmartHub, which led to the appearance of pop-up ads interrupting their viewing experience [33470]. |
| Boundary (Internal/External) |
within_system |
(a) The software failure incident related to the pop-up video adverts on Samsung smart TVs can be categorized as within_system. The incident was caused by an error in the Samsung software powering the smart TVs, specifically an update that enabled the pop-up ads by default [33470]. The issue was not attributed to external factors but rather to an internal error within the system itself. |
| Nature (Human/Non-human) |
non-human_actions |
(a) The software failure incident in this case occurred due to non-human actions. Samsung smart TVs were erroneously inserting pop-up video adverts into television and movies played through third-party apps. This issue was attributed to an error in the software update that enabled the pop-up ads by default, without any direct human intervention [33470]. |
| Dimension (Hardware/Software) |
software |
(a) The software failure incident related to hardware:
- The article does not mention any specific hardware-related issues contributing to the software failure incident. It primarily focuses on the pop-up video adverts issue on Samsung smart TVs, which seems to be a result of a software update enabling the ads by default [33470].
(b) The software failure incident related to software:
- The software failure incident in this case is clearly attributed to the software update that enabled the pop-up ads on Samsung smart TVs without user consent. Users reported interruptions in their viewing experience due to these ads, indicating a software-related issue [33470]. |
| Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) |
non-malicious |
(a) The software failure incident related to the Samsung smart TVs inserting pop-up video adverts into television and movies through third-party apps does not seem to be malicious. It appears to be a non-malicious failure caused by an error in the software update that enabled the pop-up ads by default. Samsung is conducting a thorough investigation into the cause of the issue, indicating that there was no intent to harm the system [33470]. |
| Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) |
poor_decisions |
(a) The intent of the software failure incident related to poor decisions can be inferred from the fact that Samsung had partnered with Yahoo to create adverts and other "interactive experiences" in 2014. These experiences were said to be "opt-in." However, it appears that an update to the Samsung software powering the smart TVs enabled the pop-up ads by default, causing interruptions for users [33470]. This indicates a poor decision in implementing the update that led to the unintended consequence of intrusive pop-up ads disrupting the viewing experience. |
| Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) |
development_incompetence, accidental |
(a) The software failure incident related to development incompetence is evident in the case of Samsung smart TVs inserting pop-up video adverts into television and movies played through third-party apps. This issue arose after an update to the Samsung software powering the smart TVs enabled the pop-up ads by default, indicating a lack of professional competence in implementing the update without proper user consent or opt-in mechanisms [33470].
(b) The accidental nature of the software failure incident is highlighted by the unintended consequence of the pop-up video adverts appearing on Samsung smart TVs. Users reported that these adverts interrupted their viewing experience without warning or user initiation, suggesting that the appearance of the ads was accidental and not intended behavior by the users or the software [33470]. |
| Duration |
temporary |
(a) The software failure incident in this case appears to be temporary. Samsung acknowledged the issue of pop-up video adverts appearing on their smart TVs as an error and mentioned that they are conducting a full investigation into the cause as their top priority [33470]. Users reported the issue after updating the Samsung SmartHub, indicating that it was not a permanent failure but rather a result of specific circumstances or changes introduced by the update. Additionally, the fact that the Yahoo-powered service enabling the pop-up ads can be disabled by declining the Yahoo privacy policy within the Samsung Smart Hub terms and policy section suggests that the failure is not permanent but can be mitigated by user actions [33470]. |
| Behaviour |
crash, value, other |
(a) crash: The software failure incident described in the articles can be categorized as a crash. Users reported that their Samsung smart TVs were stopping halfway through a show or movie and playing a muted Pepsi ad, which interrupted the viewing experience [33470].
(b) omission: The incident does not seem to be related to omission as the system was not omitting to perform its intended functions but rather interrupting the viewing experience with unwanted pop-up ads [33470].
(c) timing: The timing of the failure does not seem to be the issue in this case as the system was not performing its intended functions too late or too early but rather interrupting the viewing experience with pop-up ads [33470].
(d) value: The failure can be categorized under the value option as the system was performing its intended functions incorrectly by inserting pop-up video adverts into television and movies played through third-party apps, which was not the expected behavior by the users [33470].
(e) byzantine: The incident does not align with the byzantine behavior as there were no mentions of inconsistent responses or interactions from the system in the articles [33470].
(f) other: The other behavior exhibited by the system in this software failure incident was the insertion of pop-up ads by default after a software update, which was not the expected or desired behavior by the users [33470]. |