Roku Acquires Quibi’s Global Content Distribution Rights
January 08 2021 - 9:20AM
Business Wire
The Roku Channel to Gain
Exclusive Original Programming Featuring Biggest Names in
Entertainment
Roku, Inc. (NASDAQ: ROKU) announced today that The Roku
Channel will become the exclusive place to stream more than 75
premium shows and documentaries that Quibi created in conjunction
with Hollywood’s leading studios and production companies. Roku
acquired the exclusive global distribution rights to Quibi’s
award-winning shows and will make the content available for free on
an ad-supported basis in 2021 to all Roku users.
The Quibi content includes Emmy award-winning scripted series,
alternative and reality programming and documentaries featuring
stars such as Idris Elba, Kevin Hart, Liam Hemsworth, Anna
Kendrick, Nicole Richie, Chrissy Teigen, and Lena Waithe. In
addition to the full range of titles that had previously premiered
on Quibi, more than a dozen new programs will make their exclusive
debut on The Roku Channel.
The Roku Channel is the home for free and premium news and
entertainment and in Q4 2020 reached U.S. households with an
estimated 61.8 million people. The Roku Channel experienced rapid
growth in Q4 2020 doubling household reach year over year and was a
top 10 channel in both streaming hours and active accounts.
“The Roku Channel is one of the largest and fastest growing
channels on our platform today and we are consistently expanding
the breadth and quality of our free, ad-supported content for our
users,” said Rob Holmes, Vice President of Programming at Roku.
“Today’s announcement marks a rare opportunity to acquire
compelling new original programming that features some of the
biggest names in entertainment. We’re excited to make this content
available for free to our users in The Roku Channel through an
ad-supported model. We are also thrilled to welcome the incredible
studios and talented individuals who brought these stories to life
and showcase them to our tens of millions of viewers.”
“The most creative and imaginative minds in Hollywood created
groundbreaking content for Quibi that exceeded our expectations,”
said Quibi Founder Jeffrey Katzenberg. “We are thrilled that these
stories, from the surreal to the sublime, have found a new home on
The Roku Channel.”
“Quibi championed some of the most original ideas and inventive
storytelling, and I’m so proud of what I was able to create for the
platform,” said Veena Sud, creator, writer, director and executive
producer of the popular Quibi series The Stranger. “I’m so excited
to now be able to share this thriller with millions of streamers on
The Roku Channel.”
The transaction will deliver a distinctive array of premium
content geared towards the highly coveted 18-35 age demographic,
further building out The Roku Channel’s diverse lineup of more than
40,000 free movies and programs and 150 free live linear television
channels.
Following an internal restructuring by Quibi, Roku acquired
Quibi Holdings, LLC, the company that holds all of Quibi’s content
distribution rights. Financial terms of the transaction were not
disclosed.
About Roku, Inc.
Roku pioneered streaming to the TV. We connect users to the
streaming content they love, enable content publishers to build and
monetize large audiences, and provide advertisers with unique
capabilities to engage consumers. Roku streaming players and
TV-related audio devices are available in the U.S. and in select
countries through direct retail sales and licensing arrangements
with service operators. Roku TV™ models are available in the U.S.
and in select countries through licensing arrangements with TV
brands. Roku is headquartered in San Jose, Calif. U.S.A.
This press release contains “forward-looking” statements that
are based on our beliefs and assumptions and on information
currently available to us on the date of this press release.
Forward-looking statements may involve known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results,
performance or achievements to be materially different from those
expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These
statements include but are not limited to the content, benefits,
features, timing and availability of the Quibi content library on
The Roku Channel; the opportunities that marketers are seeking; and
the features, benefits and reach of The Roku Channel and the Roku
platform. Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to
update these forward-looking statements publicly, or to update the
reasons actual results could differ materially from those
anticipated in the forward-looking statements, even if new
information becomes available in the future. Important factors that
could cause our actual results to differ materially are detailed
from time to time in the reports Roku, Inc. files with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 and our Quarterly
Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2020.
Copies of reports filed with the SEC are posted on Roku’s website
and are available from Roku without charge.
“America’s No. 1 TV streaming platform” is based on hours
streamed according to Kantar, Nov. 2020.
Roku is a registered trademark of Roku, Inc. in the U.S. and in
other countries. Trade names, trademarks and service marks of other
companies appearing in this press release are the property of their
respective holders.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210108005112/en/
Media Dallas Lawrence dlawrence@roku.com
Investors Conrad Grodd cgrodd@roku.com
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