Interview: SPPL-Brand Thomson Wants to Break Into Entry-Level Smart TV Market With Jio’s Help

Thomson, a budget smart television brand, seeks to enter an even lower-end market with its latest products. To achieve this, its licensee, Super Plastronics Private Limited (SPPL), has found an ally in Mukesh Ambani -led Reliance Jio. Thomson has become the first brand to launch a lineup of smart TVs powered by Jio’s new smart TV platform, JioTele OS. Priced starting at ₹18,999, Thomson’s new QLED TV range is aimed at “redefining the smart TV experience” in India.

Republic Tech spoke to SPPL CEO Avneet Singh Marwah to understand how that would happen, especially when established connected TV platforms, such as Google TV, have a stronghold in India’s television market, which a Statista report says is expected to touch $2.6 billion in revenue in 2025 despite headwinds such as market saturation. Here are the edited excerpts from the exclusive interaction.

Verma: What Reliance Jio has announced for the connected TV market looks promising, at least from a consumer point of view. However, how do you think it will impact original design manufacturers (ODMs) and TV brands? Is there a market for another smart TV OS since there are already multiple options on the market?

Marwah: We already offer Google’s OS on our TVs. But we wanted an OS that was entry-level for semi-urban and rural areas where penetration of the Internet is slow and consumers do not use “expensive” apps. We wanted a UI for that. However, more importantly, we wanted a UI that was “completely made in India.” I still remember five years back, nobody would believe that India would ever make its own UI for televisions — that, too, with all apps.

A lot of people have tried, but they failed with Netflix, Dolby, and platforms such as Hotstar. This [JioTele OS] is the first ever UI in the world that is homegrown and has all the applications. 99.9 per cent of a smart TV’s ecosystem is there in Jio’s new platform.

Google has created an ecosystem. Similarly, Jio is one of the first ones to realise that if you do not have your ecosystem, you won’t be able to connect to AI and IoT and relative environment. So, Thomson’s TV will not benefit only from the UI, but also from the partnerships. Jio has more than 50 per cent of the market share in the app business. Hotstar is now JioHotstar, and there are a lot of channels that they now own.

In the near future, there will be several internet combos that will let users pay only for the internet and enjoy access to most applications for free.

Moreover, user data will be safe because it is not going outside of India with JioTele OS. Google has one of the most secure UIs against data breaches, but JioTele OS will be an option for entry-level.

Other OEM brands, such as Sony, Samsung, LG, TCL, and Hisense, will never do what we have. At least we have some exclusive Indian UI where we can give competition, we have something that we probably own and offer one-to-one competition. Because otherwise, it was a commodity business. Everybody was doing the same OEM business, and we were challenging each other regarding prices.

It is a lot of things that you will be offered, and the consumer will get a lot of benefits out of this whole ecosystem. So, we are trying to be a part of that.

Verma: Why do you think JioTele OS will overcome the limitations that other connected TV platforms have? What are these limitations?

Marwah: I think the biggest advantage is the regional content, and the flexibility and the ease of voice search that Jio is giving. JioTele OS supports eight different languages. This is the first of its kind. Nobody has ever given a voice search for eight languages in India. They are also using an algorithm in local content. So if a certain customer is watching local content in their local languages, the algorithm will suggest the content based on those languages only. I think these are some of the points that Jio has really gone deep into.

When something is made in India, the OS makers have to keep in mind the smallest things like this. Earlier, it was just a couple of main languages in India. However, customers today want to search whatever they like but they do not want to search much. With AI and voice search, it will be there in the algorithm of JioTele OS. Therefore, customers will have the best of this thing.

Jio has also provided over 400 local channels for free in all languages and genres, such as devotional, music, and movies. Free live TV channels have not been major by far, apart from Samsung’s Tizen. But this has not been a regular feature with other platforms till now.

Verma: Jio has not specified it, but could you tell what platform JioTele OS is based on? Is it Google TV or a new OS built from scratch?

Marwah: It is not based on Google TV. It is not a skin either. It is a web programme that Jio has built where they had to code each and every application in their ecosystem. To certify those applications, Jio has secured different contracts. With other Jio services, they have built the entire platform, comprising features such as a browser, JioTalk, etc. The most important feature is Jio Sports Mode.

Since 95 per cent of the cricket will be there in the ecosystem for free, the Jio Sports Mode will make accessing all of that content easier. Apart from cricket, all the major live matches that are telecast in India will also be part of this access.

There is a lot of deep integration according to Indian customers, and this is where Jio has an advantage over any other global brand. Jio knows consumer behaviour and how they react, so the company has modified its platform for Indian consumers.

Verma: SPPL also has a partnership with Google for Google TV. How do you think the partnership with Jio for upcoming TVs from your brand will help SPPL grow its market share? Could we see a departure from Google TV in future?

Marwah: No. We will be using JioTele OS for our entry-level products, while Google TV will go into our premium products. So, both operating systems will be available.

It is just three major brands in the world, so we need to give more variety to customers. Moreover, since Google has an affordability issue, the decision to onboard Jio has been taken. India is a mass market, so we need some affordable, aggressively-priced televisions with a comprehensive ecosystem. Therefore, we have chosen Jio to fill the gap in the market.

Verma: So, do you think JioTele OS will succeed in making a dent in Android TV’s market share in the budget or entry-level segment since many TVs under ₹20,000 use old versions of Android TV? They are doing perfectly fine without the need for an alternate platform.

Marwah: it is very difficult to predict that Jio will have all the market share, but Google does not have all the market share. I do not think that we will kill this segment. We have launched the TV with 4K to disrupt the pricing, and, of course, to take back our market share and to grow our market share. With Google, affordability is a challenge. Therefore, India needs some sort of affordable OS. We have gone ahead and taken Jio to push our market share.

While most of the market share will still remain with Google, our TVs will help fill the existing gaps in the market.

Verma: In the Union Budget 2025, the government removed the basic customs duty (BCD) on Open Cell manufacturing, but raised it on the interactive flat panel displays (IFPDs). How do you think it will impact the TV manufacturing ecosystem in India? What lies ahead for SPPL keeping this mandate in mind?

Marwah: There was no increase in Open Cell prices for manufacturers in India. It was only for individual customers and anyone who wanted to import samples. It was only for traders. For Open Cell manufacturing in India, which means for bonding, the BCD has come down from 2.5 per cent to zero. There is only one bonding plant in the country, so I do not think there is going to be a big difference between the duty on manufacturing and trading. Between 5 per cent and zero in terms of bonding, you have to manufacture the Open Cell. Whatever the ultimate cost and infrastructure cost occur, it becomes approximately the same. So, it will not make any major difference as of now.

We want to thank the government that they have looked at the existing manufacturers and they have accepted our request not to increase the Open Cell duty for manufacturers and other customs duties. There has been no impact on the business post the announcement.

Verma: When are SPPL’s new TV brands coming?

Marwah: We are still talking. I think the end of March is when we might announce a new brand.

We will also be launching televisions approximately every month till August. It is an important year for us, and we will be focusing very hard on our new lineups, and new roadmap. We have made a lot of changes according to how consumer behaviour is changing in India. There have been a lot of technology upgrades we are doing this year. We are also launching one of the most premium TVs this year. We are trying to do a lot of things and they are very important in terms of numbers as well as market share.

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