Samsung has been the world’s biggest TV brand for 20 consecutive years. This level of market dominance does not come without consistently keeping users satisfied through innovative features and display technologies. However, it also invites a different kind of criticism. A group of TV broadcasters and streaming services alleges that Samsung and other smart TV platform owners have too much control over the TV ecosystem.

A coalition of European broadcasters, including Disney, ITV, NBCUniversal, Paramount, and Warner Bros. Discovery, has argued (via Reuters) that platforms such as Samsung’s Tizen OS, Amazon Fire TV, and Google TV should face stricter regulation in Europe. The group, known as the Association of Commercial Television, has urged the European Union (EU) to include these platforms under EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA).

The full list of broadcasters includes:

The DMA designates large companies with significant market power as “gatekeepers.” It has already identified Alphabet (Google), Amazon, Apple, ByteDance (TikTok), Meta (Facebook), and Microsoft as gatekeepers and established rules to prevent them from abusing their dominance or blocking competition.

Samsung’s Tizen OS holds a 24 percent share of the TV market, while Android TV accounts for 23 percent. Amazon’s Fire TV OS has a 13 percent share. Combined, these platforms control around 60 percent of the market, raising concerns among broadcasters that platform owners could favor their own services and influence user behavior.

These concerns are not theoretical. A recent dispute between Disney and YouTube TV led to a three-week blackout for users in the USA, highlighting how platform conflicts can directly affect consumers.

All three brands have their own video streaming services. Amazon has Prime Video, Google has YouTube and YouTube TV, and Samsung has Samsung TV Plus, and they come pre-installed on their TVs or video streaming devices.