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Roku
Roku ( ) is a brand of consumer electronics that includes streaming players, smart TVs (and their operating systems), as well as a free TV streaming service. The brand is owned by Roku, Inc., an American company. As of 2024, Roku is the U.S. market leader in streaming video distribution, reaching nearly 145 million people. History Roku was founded by Anthony Wood in 2002; he had previously founded ReplayTV, a DVR company that competed with TiVo. After ReplayTV's failure, Wood worked for a while at Netflix. In 2007, Wood's company began working with Netflix on Project:Griffin, a set-top box to allow Netflix users to stream Netflix content to their TVs. Only a few weeks before the project's launch, Netflix's founder Reed Hastings decided it would hamper license arrangements with third parties, potentially keeping Netflix off other similar platforms, and killed the project. ''Fast Company'' magazine cited the decision to kill the project as "one of Netflix's riskiest mov ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Roku, Inc
Roku, Inc. ( ) is an American public company. Founded in 2002 by Anthony Wood (businessman), Anthony Wood, it produces Digital media player, streaming players and TVs, distributes Streaming television, streaming services and operates an Television advertisement, ad business on its Platform as a service, platform. Roku is the U.S. market leader in streaming video distribution, reaching 145 million people as of 2024. The company also operates in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the U.K., and Latin American countries including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru. In its initial years, Roku focused on making high-definition video players and launched the first Streaming device, connected TV device to stream Netflix in 2008. Later, in 2014, the company expanded the reach of its streaming platform by partnering with TV manufacturers to license Roku's technology. This allowed Roku OS, Roku's operating system to get pre-installed on smart TVs. Roku has since added c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Roku Channel
The Roku Channel is an over-the-top video streaming service available in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the UK. The service was launched in 2017, and is owned and operated by Roku, Inc. It is the most popular free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) service in the U.S., reportedly reaching 145 million people, as of 2024. The Roku Channel includes over 500 free channels, more than 80,000 free movies and shows, and access to paid content. The service can be streamed using streaming players and smart TVs from Roku as well as other providers, through the Roku mobile app, or via web browsers running on PCs, tablets or mobile phones. History 2017–2019: Launch in North America The Roku Channel was launched in September 2017 as a free, ad-supported streaming television service ("FAST"), available to viewers in the U.S. Roku's CEO Anthony Wood stated in the same month that the channel was a "way for content owners to publish their content on Roku without writing an app". By Au ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Roku OS
The Roku OS is an operating system software developed by Roku, Inc. It has powered consumer electronics products such as Roku-branded Streaming media player, streaming players and TVs since 2004. The Roku OS is the most popular TV operating system in the U.S., reaching an estimated 90 million households as of 2025. The Roku OS works as a Video on demand, streaming platform that hosts both "free" and paid streaming channels through its graphical user interface. It has been reported to be easy to use and powerful. The operating system initially powered Roku's streaming players in 2004, extended support for smart TVs in 2014, and since also to Roku-branded home entertainment devices such as smart speakers, as of 2023. History 2004–2013: Origin as a media player OS In January 2004, Roku's digital media player, called HD1000, was powered by the Roku OS. The Roku OS was reportedly based on Linux with kernel version 2.4.18, and leveraged Open-source software, open-source softwar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Smart TV Platforms
The following list encompasses notable smart TV platforms and application software that are used as software framework and middleware platforms used by more than just one manufacturer. Smart TV middleware providers to multiple third parties For TV sets and companion boxes vendors, available under OEM license. Smart TV framework platforms managed by standardization bodies or technology consortium Smart TV framework platforms managed by single companies or foundations Smart TV platforms utilized by vendors Includes first and third-party solutions. See also *Smart TV * Digital media player *Home theater PC * Comparison of digital media players * Next Generation Broadcasting Network TVOS, a Chinese-only operating system announced in December 2008 References {{DEFAULTSORT:Smart TV platforms and middleware software * Digital television lists Middleware Middleware is a type of computer software program that provides services to software applications beyond those availab ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Roku City
Roku City is the name given to a screensaver present on Roku streaming devices. The looping background depicts a virtual metropolis at night, colored by hues of magenta and blue. Overview The screensaver depicts a slowly looping city street in the foreground, composed of businesses, a diner, a movie theater, and a city hall. Across a body of water in the background sits a silhouette of skyscrapers and buildings, with unusual amounts of chaos: volcanoes, a spaceship, a robot monster, and more. The complementary color scheme is prominently composed of pink and purple hues. The scene changes with the seasons; in the autumn months, trees change colors. The illustration contains easter eggs of various films and characters, including ''King Kong'' and '' The Wizard of Oz''. The illustrations were created by Kyle Jones, a freelance graphic artist, who took inspiration from Art Deco architecture to design the city. The name of the background known internally at Roku was City Scroll: Mov ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Streaming Television
Streaming television is the digital distribution of television content, such as films and television series, streamed over the Internet. Standing in contrast to dedicated terrestrial television delivered by over-the-air aerial systems, cable television, and/or satellite television systems, streaming television is provided as over-the-top media (OTT), or as Internet Protocol television (IPTV). In the United States, streaming television has become "the dominant form of TV viewing." History Up until the 1990s, it was not thought possible that a television show could be squeezed into the limited telecommunication bandwidth of a copper telephone cable to provide a streaming service of acceptable quality, as the required bandwidth of a digital television signal was (in the mid-1990s perceived to be) around 200 Mbit/s, which was 2,000 times greater than the bandwidth of a speech signal over a copper telephone wire. By the year 2000, a television broadcast could be compressed t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anthony Wood (businessman)
Anthony J. Wood (born December 4, 1965) is an English-born American billionaire businessman who is the founder, Chairman and CEO of Roku, Inc. In April 2021, he owned 15% stake in Roku, and had a net worth of US$7.2 billion. Personal life Wood was born and grew up in Manchester, England, followed by the State of Georgia in the U.S. At the age of 13, he moved to the Netherlands with family, and then lived in Texas in the U.S. In 1984, when Wood was a teenager, he published "Lunar Lander" in the Ahoy! magazine. He earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Texas A&M University. It was there that Wood met his wife, Susan, who was studying environmental design. The couple has three children, and reside in Palo Alto, California. Career While in college, Wood founded his first company, "AW Software", to sell computer programs. He also founded "SunRize Industries" while studying engineering, developing software and hardware for the Amiga. After graduating, he founded "S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Streaming Device
A digital media player (also known as a streaming device or streaming box) is a type of consumer electronics device designed for the storage, playback, or viewing of digital media content. They are typically designed to be integrated into a home cinema configuration, and attached to a television or AV receiver or both. The term is most synonymous with devices designed primarily for the consumption of content from streaming media services such as internet video, including subscription-based Over-the-top media service, over-the-top content services. These devices usually have a compact form factor (either as a compact set-top box, or a dongle designed to plug into an HDMI port), and contain a 10-foot user interface with support for a remote control and, in some cases, voice commands, as control schemes. Some services may support remote control on digital media players using their respective mobile apps, while Google's Chromecast ecosystem is designed around integration with the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Smart TV
A smart TV, also known as a connected TV (CTV or, rarely, CoTV), is a traditional television set with integrated Internet and interactive Web 2.0 features that allow users to stream music and videos, browse the internet, and view photos. Smart TVs are a technological convergence of computers, televisions, and digital media players. Besides the traditional functions of television sets provided through traditional broadcasting media, these devices can provide access to over-the-top media services such as streaming television and internet radio, along with home networking access. Smart TV is different from Internet TV, IPTV, or streaming television. ''Internet TV'' refers to receiving television content over the Internet instead of traditional systems such as terrestrial, cable, and satellite, regardless of how the Internet is delivered. ''IPTV'' is one of the Internet television technology standards for use by television broadcasters. ''Streaming television'' is a term used for p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Netflix
Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple languages. Launched in 2007, nearly a decade after Netflix, Inc. began its pioneering DVD-by-mail movie rental service, Netflix is the most-subscribed video on demand streaming media service, with 301.6 million paid memberships in more than 190 countries as of 2025. By 2022, "Netflix Original" productions accounted for half of its library in the United States and the namesake company had ventured into other categories, such as video game publishing of mobile games through its flagship service. As of 2025, Netflix is the 18th most-visited website in the world, with 21.18% of its traffic coming from the United States, followed by the United Kingdom at 6.01%, Canada at 4.94%, and Brazil at 4.24%. History Launch as a mail-based renta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
ReplayTV
ReplayTV was a former DVR company that from 1999 until 2005, produced a brand of digital video recorders (DVR), a term synonymous with ''personal video recorder'' (PVR). It is a consumer video device which allows users to capture television programming to internal hard disk storage for later viewing (and ''time shifting''). ReplayTV was founded in September 1997 by future Roku founder Anthony Wood, who was president and CEO of ReplayTV until August 2001. The first ReplayTV model was introduced in January 1999 during the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, at the same time as a competing DVR model from rival company TiVo. After the sale of assets to DirecTV, ReplayTV's only ongoing activity was maintenance of the electronic program guide service by D&M Holdings, which was to be discontinued on July 31, 2011. However, on July 29, 2011, a notice was placed on the ReplayTV website stating that service would be continued without interruption for lifetime subscribers and monthly ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Free Ad-supported Streaming Television
Free advertising-supported streaming television (FAST) is a category of streaming television services which offer traditional linear television programming ("live TV") and studio-produced movies without a paid subscription, funded exclusively by advertising akin to free-to-air TV stations. Platforms following this model include Pluto TV, Rakuten TV (not available in the United States, but added internationally), The Roku Channel, Samsung TV Plus, Tubi, and Xumo. These services stand apart from platforms predominantly featuring user-generated content (like YouTube and Twitch), as well as from subscription-based services (like Amazon Prime Video and Netflix). The term was coined by Alan Wolk to differentiate the category in a December 2018 article in TVREV. Platforms The FAST ecosystem has different layers. The best-known FASTs are the aggregators, which fall into three categories. * FASTs owned by major media companies by every country: Paramount's Pluto TV, Fox's Tubi, C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
