Earlier this month, Roku announced that their much anticipated Amazon Channels competitor would be launching in late-January. Premium Subscriptions on The Roku Channel has officially launched with the ability to subscribe to 25+ launch partners including Showtime, Starz, EPIX.
Starting today, Customers will begin to see premium subscriptions on select Roku players, with all devices receiving the update in the coming weeks. Those who receive the update will see a new row called Browse Premium Subscriptions on The Roku Channel.
Users can access 25+ premium partners including: Showtime, Starz, EPIX, Lifetime Movie Club, Smithsonian Channel Plus, Tastemade, and more. Those who sign-up for Showtime, Starz, EPIX before March 31, 2019, can enjoy a 30-day free trial of those services on The Roku Channel.
Premium Subscriptions on The Roku Channel will allow customers to browse content prior to signing-up and offer free trials for all subscriptions. Once you decide to subscribe, you have the option of a one-click sign-up with subscription management in your Roku account.
In addition to the 10,000+ free ad-supported movies and TV episodes on The Roku Channel, you will be able to browse, search, and watch your premium subscriptions all in the same place. Content will be available not only on your Roku Player, but also on the web at www.therokuchannel.com, as well as mobile devices. It is available on iOS starting today and will be added to Android device in mid-February.
It does not come as a surprise that Roku is taking on Amazon Channels. This comes as reports expect Amazon’s Prime Video Channels business to net $500+ million from their streaming partners. Amazon currently drives 53% of HBO’s direct-to-consumer subscribers, so streaming companies are hoping to expand their acquisition channels.
They aren’t the only company looking to take on Amazon either. Both Apple and Facebook are also in preparations of launching similar services in 2019.
About Premium Subscriptions for The Roku Channel
Premium Subscriptions will offer “one-click” signup and easy subscription management. Free, live and subscription content will be presented together in The Roku Channel, making it simple to browse, subscribe to and watch a wide variety of streaming entertainment.
Free for all users
The Roku Channel will continue to include thousands of free, ad-supported titles available without a subscription and is available on a range of devices; users do not need any subscriptions or memberships in order to access quality free, ad-supported content.
Wide variety of subscription partners
Premium Subscription partners at launch include STARZ, SHOWTIME and EPIX, as well as Baeble Music; CollegeHumor’s DROPOUT; CuriosityStream; Fandor Spotlight; FitFusion; The Great Courses Signature Collection; Grokker; Hi-YAH!; Hopster; Lifetime Movie Club; DOX, LOLFlicks, Monsters and Nightmares, Magnolia Selects, and Warriors & Gangsters presented by Magnolia Pictures; MHz Choice; NOGGIN; Shout! Factory TV, Smithsonian Channel Plus; Stingray Karaoke; Tastemade; Viewster Anime; and ZooMoo.
One-click subscriptions
Customers will be able to start a free trial or subscribe to new Premium Subscriptions with one click using their existing Roku account information once they visit the subscription page.
Free trials
All premium content can be trialed for at least seven days with reminders sent before each free trial expires and billing starts.
Single bill
Subscriptions will be managed directly from my.roku.com. Customers will receive one monthly bill for all premium subscriptions on The Roku Channel.
Want to Learn More About Live TV Streaming Services?
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