A new over-the-network software update rolling out in the US will plaster “promotions and curated advertisements” on fridge screens whenever they sit idle. This is happening despite Samsung telling The Verge in April that it had “no plans” to do any such thing.

The company is spinning this as a pilot programme so there is plenty of time not to buy the product so that Samsung wakes up to how stupid the move is.

In a statement to Android Authority, Samsung said: “Samsung is committed to innovation and enhancing every day value for our home appliance customers. As part of our ongoing efforts to strengthen that value, we are conducting a pilot program to offer promotions and curated advertisements on certain Samsung Family Hub refrigerator models in the US market.”

The ads appear on the so-called Cover Screen when the display is idle, but will not show up in Art Mode or when cycling through family photo albums. Users can dismiss individual ads, though only for the duration of a campaign.

Redditors who first spotted the change responded with predictable outrage. Many pointed out that Samsung has form here, having bunged ads into its smart TVs a decade ago as part of its “screens everywhere” obsession.

What Samsung calls “innovation” looks more like the creeping enshitification of smart tech or video streaming which has made products (such as Amazon Prime) unusable.