Roku’s Channel Store Brings OTT Option to Local TV
Roku Channel Store
With cable subscriptions declining and a host of nonlinear, IP-connected devices emerging to offer new, incremental revenue possibilities, the time has come for local TV to get serious about an OTT strategy. To capitalize on this opportunity at a market level, local operators should be asking, “what does an effective OTT strategy entail?” and “what steps can be taken today?”
Roku, an OTT set-top box provider with an open application environment and channel store for content developers to build on, is probing these same questions and thinks it may have the answer. Partnerships, curated content, revised workflow and advertising are all part of the solution.
Roku’s channel store already features a growing swath of audio and video content, including Netflix, Hulu Plus, MLB.TV, the NHL, Pandora and Roku Newscaster, which culls together a cross-section of news from national outlets. While sports and entertainment/drama are particularly appealing, Jim Funk, Roku’s VP of business development, told BIA/Kelsey that customers of the channel store have demonstrated “lots of interest in local stations.”