Roku Inc. today announced the expansion of its international presence with the introduction of the Roku Powered™ program. Aimed at Pay TV service providers outside of the US, Roku is now licensing the technology that powers its streaming platform to enable providers to use the Internet to deliver customized entertainment to consumers.
“There has been incredible demand from Pay TV providers for a simple way to address the increasing consumer interest in Internet-delivered entertainment,” said Steve Shannon, general manager of content and services at Roku. “Our world-class software, cost-effective hardware design, and broad content selection make Roku the ideal strategic partner for Pay TV providers to work with to transform their user experience and set the stage for success in this fast-changing world of Internet-delivered video.”
The Roku Powered program allows for customization and integration with Pay TV services to optimize the user experience, reduce customer churn, and encourage TV and broadband tier upgrades. The Roku Powered program provides Pay TV providers with access to low-cost hardware, fast software, a simple and intuitive user interface, and a broad selection of streaming content. The Roku Powered program also includes access to on-going software upgrades so customers always have the latest and best user experience. Software customizations include Pay TV operator branding of every stage of the user experience, custom user interface themes, built-in promotional capabilities, and control of the streaming content available through the platform.
Roku pioneered this approach in partnership with BSkyB (Sky). Following a commercial relationship that was established in 2012, Roku and Sky developed the NOW TV Box, which launched in July 2013. It was the first time Roku had licensed its award-winning streaming platform, allowing Sky to extend its leadership in over-the-top video by harnessing a cost-effective hardware design coupled with a secure software platform.
“The innovative licensing approach we developed with Roku dramatically reduced our time to market, enabling us to capitalize on the growing demand for Internet TV by launching a powerful and great value streaming box,” said Emma Lloyd, director of corporate business development at Sky. “The NOW TV Box is already a key component in our over-the-top leadership, giving customers another simple way of accessing Sky content and further extending our distribution footprint.”
Shannon will speak at the IBC Leaders’ Summit in Amsterdam on Sept. 11 and will be available to meet privately with providers. For more information, visit www.roku.com/rokupowered or contact the team at rokupowered@roku.com.
About Roku Inc.
Roku is the creator of a popular streaming platform for delivering entertainment to the TV. Roku streaming players and the Roku Streaming Stick are made by Roku and sold through major retailers in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and the Republic of Ireland. Roku licenses its operating system to TV manufacturers to create co-branded Roku TV models, and licenses its platform to Pay TV providers to create co-branded streaming experiences. Roku was founded by Anthony Wood, inventor of the DVR. Roku is privately held and headquartered in Saratoga, Calif., U.S.
Roku is a registered trademark and Roku Powered is a trademark of Roku, Inc. in the U.S. and in other countries.
