Turn Off Tracking Secria

The Texas smart TV lawsuits, case by case

On 15 December 2025 the Texas Attorney General sued five TV makers over ACR. Samsung and LG have since reached agreements; the Sony, Hisense and TCL cases were last reported as ongoing.1, 2

Checked 1 November 2026 against the sources. This page reports filings and announcements; it isn't legal advice.

Where each case stands

Status as of 1 November 2026, from the Attorney General's releases and the court papers it posted. The office's releases from 12 May to 31 October 2026 announce nothing new in these cases.3

Company suedCourt namedStageYour settings
Samsung Electronics America and Samsung Electronics Co.Collin County district court, in the petition as posted4Agreement announced 26 February 20265Samsung guide
LG Electronics U.S.A.169th District Court, Bell County, cause no. 25DCV3585076Agreed final judgment announced 11 May 20262LG guide
Hisense USAComal County district court, in the petition as posted7Temporary restraining order announced 17 December 2025; case ongoing as of 11 May 20268, 2Hisense steps
Sony Corporation of America and Sony ElectronicsNueces County district court, in the petition as posted9Ongoing as of 11 May 20262Sony steps
TCL North AmericaWilliamson County district court, in the petition as posted10Ongoing as of 11 May 20262TCL guide
 The petitions the office posted leave the cause number blank. LG's is captioned for Tarrant County; its judgment names Bell County.9, 4, 7, 10, 11, 6

What the suits allege

These are the state's allegations, not findings by a court.

The claim

Each petition says the company's ACR collects what people watch, including from connected devices such as game consoles and Blu-ray players, and that its disclosures are hidden, vague and misleading.9, 4, 7, 10, 11 The state sues under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, Business and Commerce Code sections 17.46 and 17.47.9

The Hisense order

The office says the temporary restraining order stops Hisense from collecting ACR data about Texans, and from using, selling, sharing, disclosing or transferring it, while the case goes on.8 A restraining order is a temporary step, not a ruling on the claims.

We could not confirm from a court record whether the order is still in force.

What the agreements require

Both cover Texas consumers.5, 6

Samsung

Announced26 February 2026

From the Attorney General's release. The office did not post the agreement itself.5

  • Samsung must stop collecting or processing ACR viewing data without Texas consumers' express consent.5
  • It must update its smart TVs with clear and conspicuous disclosures and consent screens.5

LG

Announced11 May 2026

From the agreed final judgment the office posted, which has the signing date left blank.6

  • From 180 days after the judgment takes effect, LG may not collect or process viewing data, or offer services using it, without consumers' affirmative express consent.6
  • Within 30 days, LG must add a plain summary to the setup consent screens of 2025 models and to the top of its Viewing Information Agreement.6The judgment's suggested wording: "If you agree to the Viewing Information Agreement, LG will use Automatic Content Recognition technology to identify and analyze content on your device."6
  • On 2027 and later models, a pop-up about the agreement must appear when you reach the User Agreements screen during setup.6
  • The terms last five years. The judgment says it is not an admission of wrongdoing.6

In the judgment, LG stipulates that viewing data from consumers has not been and will not be sent from the US to China.6

Questions people ask

Do I have to live in Texas to turn ACR off?

No. The settings are on the TV wherever you live, and our brand-by-brand steps work for US models. The agreements only set rules for how the companies treat Texas consumers.5, 6

What did the Attorney General tell Texans to do?

On 19 December 2025 the office published general steps: open Settings, find the privacy or terms section, and turn off options such as Smart TV Experience or Viewing Information Services, plus personalized ads.12 The exact names differ by brand.

Is anyone else suing over ACR?

In February 2017 Vizio agreed to pay $2.2 million to settle Federal Trade Commission and New Jersey charges that it collected viewing data from 11 million TVs without consumers' knowledge or consent.13 Our ACR explainer has the details.

Other TV guides

Sources 13
  1. Release announcing the suits against Sony, Samsung, LG, Hisense and TCL, Office of the Texas Attorney General, 15 December 2025. Read 1 November 2026.
  2. Release announcing the LG agreement, Office of the Texas Attorney General, 11 May 2026. Read 1 November 2026.
  3. News releases, Office of the Texas Attorney General, list pages covering 11 May to 31 October 2026. Read 1 November 2026.
  4. Texas' Original Verified Petition, State of Texas v. Samsung Electronics America and Samsung Electronics Co., posted by the Office of the Texas Attorney General, December 2025. Read 1 November 2026.
  5. Release announcing the Samsung agreement, Office of the Texas Attorney General, 26 February 2026. Read 1 November 2026.
  6. Agreed Final Judgment and Permanent Injunction, State of Texas v. LG Electronics U.S.A., cause no. 25DCV358507, 169th District Court, Bell County, as posted by the Office of the Texas Attorney General, 2026. Read 1 November 2026.
  7. Texas's Original Petition, State of Texas v. Hisense USA Corporation, posted by the Office of the Texas Attorney General, December 2025. Read 1 November 2026.
  8. Release announcing the Hisense temporary restraining order, Office of the Texas Attorney General, 17 December 2025. Read 1 November 2026.
  9. Texas' Original Petition, State of Texas v. Sony Corporation of America and Sony Electronics, posted by the Office of the Texas Attorney General, December 2025. Read 1 November 2026.
  10. Texas' Original Verified Petition, State of Texas v. TCL North America, posted by the Office of the Texas Attorney General, December 2025. Read 1 November 2026.
  11. Texas' Original Verified Petition, State of Texas v. LG Electronics U.S.A., posted by the Office of the Texas Attorney General, December 2025. Read 1 November 2026.
  12. Consumer alert with general steps to turn off ACR, Office of the Texas Attorney General, 19 December 2025. Read 1 November 2026.
  13. Release on the Vizio settlement, Federal Trade Commission, 6 February 2017. Read 1 November 2026.

Every status comes from the Attorney General's own releases and the court papers it posted. How we check