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Cloud Gaming Capable Smart TV Sales

January 31st, 2026

Cloud Gaming

Smart TV unit sales were projected to reach 195.6 million by the end of H2 2025; IDG estimates ~42.0–54.0 million of those units will be cloud gaming-capable, with a base case estimate of ~48 million.

Samsung And LGE Lead Penetration

Samsung and LGE drive cloud gaming adoption on Smart TVs by using their proprietary operating systems to distribute cloud gaming apps at scale.
Samsung is the market leader in cloud gaming–enabled TVs, leveraging Tizen OS to distribute cloud gaming broadly.
Cloud gaming support covers 2022 or newer mid- to premium-tier TVs and select 2020–2021 premium models.
The lineup extends beyond Xbox, GeForce NOW, and Luna to include Antstream Arcade, Boosteroid, and Blacknut.
LGE is the second major driver of cloud gaming on Smart TVs, with webOS enabling support across mid- and premium-tier models.
LGE offers GeForce NOW on select 2021 or newer OLED, QNED, and NanoCell TVs, with Xbox Cloud Gaming and the broader app lineup expanding to 2023 or newer models.

Multi-OEMs Expand into Cloud Gaming

Android TV is the lowest-barrier path to cloud gaming for multi-OEMs as the OS is compatible with popular cloud gaming apps.
This enables OEMs to access and pre-install cloud-gaming apps without maintaining native OS support on their own platforms.
TCL leverages Android TV to scale cloud-gaming support, while its Roku OS models lack native capability, limiting overall penetration.
TCL could expand via a Sony TV merger, leveraging its market share.
Hisense supports cloud gaming via Android TV in North America and Europe, while regions using its proprietary VIDAA OS currently lack support.
Xbox Cloud Gaming is set to launch on VIDAA in 2026, expanding reach.
Xiaomi’s cloud-gaming support depends on hardware performance rather than OS.
Android models support GeForce NOW and Xbox Cloud Gaming, but lower-end hardware limits effective penetration.
In China, some Hisense and TCL TV models ship with Tencent START preinstalled, enabling cloud gaming locally (discussed on the next page.)

Tencent Leads Cloud Gaming in China

Tencent START is one of the largest cloud-gaming services in China, but it remains largely confined to the domestic market.
Launched in 2019, START extends Tencent’s gaming ecosystem across PC, mobile, and select Smart TVs by allowing users to instantly stream a library of games.
The catalog mixes major Tencent-operated titles (e.g., League of Legends, FIFA Online 4, NBA 2K Online 2, QQ Speed) with select third-party games.
Tencent differentiates itself as one of the few Chinese cloud-gaming providers with Smart TV OEM partnerships, distributing START as a dedicated app on select China-market sets (e.g., TCL/Hisense).
Monetization is hybrid via memberships and time packs, with core pricing at VIP ¥29/month (~$4.2) for 15 hours and SVIP ¥59/month (~$8.5) for 40 hours.

EXCERPT FROM IDG INTELLIGENCE · January 2026 GAMES REPORT · Mobile FORECAST UPDATE

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