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Samsung has talked for some time about an integrated video focused app store that would span its smartphones, TVs and PCs, a goal also being pursued by Sony. It has shown off a new store for the US market, for TVs and Blu-Ray players, which represents another building block, along with the Samsungmovies video shopfront, available in Europe, and other mobile offerings.

Eventually, the Korean giant is likely to integrate its key software platforms, such as Android and its own bada, as well as multiple screens, in a universal store and user experience, with common identity, log-in and security processes that follow the consumer between devices. For now, the experience is more fragmented, but it did say its new US offering would, in future, align with its smartphone push and especially the Galaxy S Android line and its successors. The Galaxy S is heavily geared to video with its large Super AMOLED screen and other media features, and has made a big splash in the US, shipping one million units to date.

The Samsung Apps platform is coming to the US initially via TVs and DVRs though, Samsung hopes to lure TV apps developers into its ecosystem and get smartphone software firms to add TVs and internet connected entertainment products to their efforts.

"Our goal is to make it easier and easier to allow folks to develop across different platforms," said Olivier Manuel, director of content for Samsung North America. To help the process along, it will offer $500,000 in prizes to developers who build applications for its TVs and Blu-ray players. The highest profile supporters so far are Netflix and Pandora, which also want to expand their video activities into the mobile world.

Samsung Apps uses modern web techniques, notably Javascript, CSS and XML, plus Adobe Flash Lite 3.1. This makes it very similar to bada, though the two are not yet interoperable. Manuel said the aim is to bring them together and offer a single framework, but gave no timeframes.

Among the mobile elements the vendor is adding to its connected TV strategy are an Android app that turns a Galaxy S into a remote control for a Samsung TV or Blu-ray player (the same app is available for the Samsung Windows phone Omnia II, as well as the iPhone). Samsung expects to sell 6.5m internet connected TVs by the end of this year, says The Wall Street Journal, and aims to treble its smartphone shipments this year to about 18m.

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