You’re probably right, the ad space and metrics might be worth the component cost, r&d and then some. Slap some apps on it to justify it to the consumer and sell it cheaper.
I can tell you for sure that pre-pandemic you could get AllWinner SOCs capable of 1080P 60Hz for around $2.50/pc. The 4K ones seem to be around $7/pc, still peanuts.
From memory, Netflix pays around $10 to have a dedicated button on the remote, so even if the manufacturer didn't play any ads they'd still be in the black.
