Roku Goes All In for New Premium Subscription Service

By Chris Lange Updated Jan 11, 1:05PM EST · Published Jan 2, 12:30PM EST

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Roku Goes All In for New Premium Subscription Service — © Thinkstock

Roku Inc. (NASDAQ: ROKU) announced on Wednesday that it would be expanding its platform to include “Premium Subscriptions.” As a result, users will be able to watch both free ad-supported and paid premium entertainment in one easy-to-navigate interface, with personalized recommendations, where they can browse, trial and subscribe to popular services.

In addition to more than 10,000 free, ad-supported movies and TV episodes already available, the Roku Channel will soon offer users the option to add 25 or more Premium Subscriptions from providers such as Showtime, Starz and EPIX.

Premium Subscriptions will only be viewable within the Roku Channel. Additionally, search within the Roku Channel will be expanded, allowing users to easily search for keywords within the channel. The Roku Channel will make subscription streaming easy for users by providing one destination to watch premium entertainment from more than 25 providers with a single monthly bill and simple account management.

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Rob Holmes, Vice President of Programming and Engagement, commented:

We’re focused on making it easy to find great entertainment of all types on the platform and adding Premium Subscriptions is a natural evolution for The Roku Channel. As a top five channel by active account reach, The Roku Channel is already a great source for free, ad-supported entertainment and provides significant user engagement. By making it easy for users to discover, subscribe to and watch Premium Subscriptions, we believe this offering will result in increased subscriptions and user engagement for our subscription partners and an even better user experience.

Shares of Roku were last seen up about 1% at $31.07, with a consensus analyst price target of $60.46 and a 52-week range of $26.30 to $77.57.

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About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.