- webOS update adds Microsoft Copilot automatically
- The application cannot be deleted.
- People are concerned about privacy
If there’s anything that would stop me from buying one of the best TVs in today’s world where everything is online and connected, it’s the fear of the manufacturer taking a perfectly good TV and ruining it. And that’s exactly what some LG owners believe is happening with their TVs in the latest update.
The conversation is unfolding on social media, including Reddit’s r/mildlyinfuriating subreddit, where users discuss an LG firmware update that automatically adds an unwanted app: Microsoft Copilot. And to make matters worse, once the app is on your TV, you can’t delete it.
This is proving about as popular as when Apple introduced a U2 album to everyone’s iTunes library. It didn’t matter if it was a good album or a bad album. The problem was that Apple forced millions of people to release an album and initially gave them no way to delete it again. It is widely considered one of the biggest public relations disasters in music.
It seems that if what LG is doing with its televisions were a U2 song, it would be Bad. So what’s going on?
Why are LG owners unhappy with this webOS update?
Smart TV makers’ goal to monetize TVs they’ve already sold is one of the least welcome trends in recent years.
We’ve been reporting on TV companies using updates to implement unpopular changes for some time now, like when LG added screen saver ads in 2024, when Roku tested an ad that ran before the home screen appeared, or when Google revamped Google TV with much larger ads.
The incorporation of the immovable Copilot seems one more step in the wrong direction. This is more important than adding a little advertising. This is adding an AI application and that raises concerns about privacy and whether it is getting your information.
As Reddit user defjam16 put it: “I’ve always hated bloatware, but installing an AI assistant (without explicit permission) that can’t be removed, with unknown access to the microphone and other services, might take the cake.”
ASouthernDandy is certainly not a fan: “Pre-installed crap is universally crap. If I wanted it, I would have eventually installed it myself. The only reason it’s included is because no one would choose it.” – although your solution, “burn your TV”, is not one I would recommend, both for financial and environmental reasons.
But the many comparisons with the bloatware that infests PCs and also many phones seem fair to me.
Satan-o-saurus says: “Tech companies have taught me to never install or opt-in any new features they try to get me to use, ever. It’s literally always a scam/something that will make my user experience worse/something that is simply designed to harvest my data or otherwise exploit me.”
We have contacted LG for comment and will keep you informed.
* It’s okay, but it’s not Achtung Baby.
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