Netflix announces its first ‘recommended’ TVs — LG, Sony, and Roku all make the grade

Netflix wants you to consider its programming when you’re shopping around for your next big screen.

The company unveiled Netflix Recommended TVs today, a new program that will put Netflix logos on televisions that work optimally with its streaming service. So far these are the televisions that make the cut:

• LG 4K UHD TVs w/ webOS 2.0
• Sony Android Full HDTVs
• Roku TVs from Hisense, Insignia, and TCL

Netflix first announced its television evaluation program back in January.

Considering that not all smart TVs are created equal, this is a cool way to filter out some of the other products on the market. After all, if I’m going shell out for a new screen, I want to know that I can watch Orange Is the New Black without any technological glitches.

What’s perhaps most notable about this new recommendation system is that Netflix has become popular enough to sway the opinions of the television-buying public — or at least these television makers think so.

If Netflix can convince major hardware companies like LG, Sony, and Insignia to paste a little Netflix-approved sticker on its televisions, that means they are acknowledging that digital programming has a large-scale effect on consumers.