Automatic litterboxes, fancy toothbrushes, vidya consoles, air purifiers are all examples of physical items often sold at a loss in anticipation of a future revenue stream off the top of my head. Ad specific, lower end smartphones are cheap to free because the money comes from selling your data (by way of tracking apps the manufacturer is paid to include). That their motives aren't altruistic kinda goes without saying. I would be very surprised if televisions were excluded from this process, and need a new explanation for walmart's sub-$50 ad-choked tv selection