Discussions

[AhmedE]

I tend to keep a flash drive plugged into my TV's USB port. I have a collection of videos that I have collected from a variety of online sources over the years. When I want to watch some of them, I convert them into Quicktime .MOV files, place them on a flash drive, and watch them on my TV via Roku Media Player.

Obviously each time I need to change the videos on the flash drive, I have unplug it, then plug it back in when ready. Lately every time I plug in the flash drive I get a permission dialog asking me if I want or don't want to allow the channels on the TV to access the flash drive.

Why has this suddenly become necessary? It wasn't like this before and I could simply plug in the flash drive without confirming permissions. To me, this dialog is redundant and pointless. I would appreciate it if permission could be granted permanently or the necessity for it simply eliminated outright.

[Hpierson]

Content on your flash drive will now be shared with other apps you watch on Roku and will tell them if what you watch or listen to if music.  This could be your own content, or it could be something pirated off the internet.

Personally, I feel no one should know what I plugged into the USB port, and Roku has overstepped their authority collecting information on what I watch or listen to.  I don't understand why there is no pushback at how all our buying habits, viewing/listening habits, and any other information that is collected about us while the data collected on you is traded like a commodity without your consent. 

[renojim]

@Hpierson, none of that conspiracy nonsense is true.  Absolutely nothing has changed with regards to accessing a USB drive.  Apps have always had access to the USB drive.  Roku has decided to make that clear after all these years probably to make the lawyers happy.  If you weren't worried about it before, there's no reason to be worried about it now.

@AhmedE, obviously Roku implemented this new warning poorly, but for things they're doing poorly these days this pales in comparison.

[zqmjadlzfltqdnp]

Smells like BS to me - it's even worse when they admit it

[zqmjadlzfltqdnp]

How do you feel about that new service agreement?

[zqmjadlzfltqdnp]

Bricking Roku TV's unless people agree to the Dispute Resolution Terms?

[Hpierson]

I was wondering if that was what you were referring to.

Let me put it this way.  I can't see how settling a dispute through a company that Roku pays for is a benefit for those with disputes.  Something tells me that Roku would have the upper hand.

That said, I don't see how they can prevent the dispute from going to a normal legal process through a government court system where the dispute would be decided through a non-biased system.

[zqmjadlzfltqdnp]

There doesn't need to be an upper hand, stop stealing data from everyone.  I can't even go to the grocery store without them wanting my name, email, phone #...

[Hpierson]

When you go to the grocery store and use your debit card, they use that card as an identifier as being you.  So the grocery store is keeping a database on the products you purchase.  They don't use the actual debit card number because that is illegal, but when you use the card it has a hash-key that associates that card to you.  Now they sell that information to the vendors (food producers and distributors) as to what you buy from them.  They also sell the information to third parties that have nothing to do with the store, but is a company that keeps databases on what people buy and do so they have a snapshot of what kind of a person you are.

As much as one person accused me of being a conspiracy theorist, this is a fact and why I feel there should be laws that protect consumers from this abuse.