Instead of scrolling through menus with a remote control to find something to watch, viewers are increasingly choosing content by talking to artificial intelligence. Even without knowing the exact title of a film or drama, a viewer can say "find me a movie worth watching" and the AI recommends options that can be played immediately. AI has evolved beyond a search tool on the television into a "media agent" that guides what users watch and buy, according to the analysis.
SK Broadband disclosed usage data and customer behavior analysis on the 17th to mark the second anniversary of B tv A. Dot, its generative AI-based media service. Launched in September 2024, B tv A. Dot now has 1.7 million monthly active users and has surpassed 21 million conversations a month.
B tv A. Dot lets users search for content in natural language. Rather than navigating complex menus or typing an exact title, viewers can describe the mood they want or the situation they are watching in, and the service pulls up video-on-demand titles, over-the-top streaming content and live broadcasts.
A significant share of users decided what to watch during those conversations with the AI, SK Broadband said. Among customers who held media-related conversations on B tv A. Dot, 55% selected content based on the AI's response. "With so much to watch, it has paradoxically become harder to decide what to watch, and AI is helping reduce that so-called choice fatigue," the company said.
Customers who used the AI consistently also consumed more content. Those who used B tv A. Dot for five consecutive months spent 1.6 times more time watching video on demand than non-users. The streaming usage rate covering video on demand, YouTube and over-the-top services stood at 80.4% for A. Dot users, 3.3 times the 24.1% rate among non-users. The video-on-demand purchase rate was also 5 percentage points higher for A. Dot users than for B tv customers overall.
Content providers that use AI can recommend titles matched to a viewer's tastes and viewing circumstances, which is expected to drive purchasing decisions more actively. SK Broadband plans to combine AI-based content discovery, subscription products and set-top boxes to expand B tv into a "smart media hub." "We will understand customers' tastes and circumstances more precisely and deliver an AI media experience that spans recommendations, benefits and purchases," said Yoo Chang-min, head of B tv service planning at SK Broadband.
