Why does Samsung geo-block TVs without informing its customers, violating consumers' rights?

[boochie_boochie]

Hello,

I bought a TV, then moved to a different country and the TV is now good to be thrown in the bin. How is this possible let alone legal in Europe? There seem to be no way to change the TV's region, meaning it's impossible to connect it to Smart Hub, download any application, use any smart features (the very reason why I purchased a Frame TV), etc. etc.

This is absolutely unacceptable, everyone who has similar problems should notify the European Consumer Centre, as this is clearly a violation of European consumer's rights. Should you need more information on how to do this, feel free to contact me.

[Piper123]

Hey there

May we please ask -

What country did you buy the device in and which country are you trying to use it in?

[JAMES4578]

Hi @boochie_boochie  Some customers have successfully changed the Tv Region.

 can you try the following, no guarantee it will be successful but has worked for some of our Members lately.

Reset your tv and when on the screen that says “Enjoy a wide range of smart features”, do the Mute - Volume up -  Channel up - Mute . A window with the country selection should appear and you should be able to set the desired region.

An alternative is » - 2 - 8 - 9 - « (this is FFWD - 2 - 8 - 9 - REWIND).

[boochie_boochie]

Hello, does this really matter? When I purchased it, I did not sign anything agreeing the device would be functional only in the country I purchased it (as it would happen with Spotify or Netflix for instance). All I need to know is how do I change the region to a different one on a QE50LS03DAUXXH? Nobody seems to be able to answer this question. I keep on receiving obsolete instructions like this “MUTE - VOL UP, etc.” or “2 - 8 - 9”… This doesn’t work on new Frame TVs.

[boochie_boochie]

Hello, thanks this may work on old tvs, it really doesn’t on more recent models 😞

[Piper123]

We are trying to assist you here.

We are all customers of Samsung on here, not staff (unless they have the term Moderator or Community Manager in their title).

So kindly refrain from displaying attitude towards us. If the question (I asked) wasn't relevant, wouldn't have asked it.

[ChrisB_]

@boochie_boochie If the steps provided to you by our Samsung Members Stars have not resolved the issue for you, I would recommend calling our colleagues in the TV/AV team.

If you are based in the UK, you can contact them on 0333 000 0333, and their lines are open 8am to 8pm Mon-Fri, 9am to 6pm Sat-Sun. Alternatively, you can find more ways to contact us, including our Social Media channels, via the Contact Us section of our website: 

https://www.samsung.com/uk/support/contact/ 

In addition, I would also ask that you please show a little more courtesy to anyone and everyone on the Samsung Community forum who attempts to assist you with your query.  Any questions they ask will be done so in an attempt to ensure you are being provided with the best possible solution. Thank you.

[boochie_boochie]

Hello, sorry it’s really unclear who’s staff and who isn’t to me. In any case, the utter nonsense is not referred to your comment of course but to this absolutely nonsensical geo-blocking system. I have just paid 1k for a tv I cannot use, I challenge anybody not to feel extremely frustrated - and I am evidently not alone.

The tv was purchased in Greece, and I currently reside in Georgia.

[boochie_boochie]

Hello, I’d be happy to show more respect in this forum, but frankly this situation is not only absurd, it’s absolutely unacceptable, and it’s a clear violation of consumers’ rights. There are people in this forum who flagged this problem in 2020 and still haven’t figured out how to make their tv work, so I am really starting to worry I have literally thrown 1000 Euros in the bin, thing which is making me beyond upset.

[Piper123]

Thank you 🫠

My question was asked because most members in here are UK based and as we are no longer in the EU, the references to the European Consumer Centre are not relevant here. You also mentioned about EU Consumer Rights which again differ in the UK.

So, now we know that your TV started life in Greece and has now popped across to Georgia (both in the EU) we can now start to assist.

Below is a comment from @ChrisB who is a Moderator and therefore Samsung staff.

Please do reach out to Samsung Customer Support on the number Chris has provided to enable Samsung to let you know your options.

Wish you the best with this. Please do pop back and let us know how you get on.