Roku Channel Reports 83.6 Million Streaming Households; Average Revenue per User Stays Flat
The rise of The Roku Channel appears to be continuing. The free, ad-supported streaming service was featured heavily in Roku’s second-quarter earnings report, which showed that the service continued to add customers and boost streaming hours during the quarter. Other financial metrics were also good for the company, and even though it failed to gain a materially higher average revenue per user (ARPU), it was a highly positive report overall.
Key Details:
- The Roku Channel gained 2 million monthly active users, now sitting at 83.6 million.
- The company recorded its fourth consecutive quarter of positive free cash flow.
- Roku touted its live sports additions, such as the Sunday Leadoff package.
The Roku Channel now claims 83.6 million monthly active users, a jump of 2 million from last quarter's earnings report. Viewership on Roku platforms rose to 30.1 billion hours, a 5 billion hour increase year-over-year. On average, Roku viewing households now spend four hours per day streaming on their device.
Gross profit was up to $425 million, and it was the fourth straight quarter in which Roku saw positive free cash flow and adjusted earnings. Total net revenue came to $968 million, a 14% rise YoY and well ahead of Wall Street’s forecast for the company.
Really, the only blemish for Roku in the report was its average revenue per user, which only climbed $0.03 to $40.68 during the quarter. That figure was flat year-over-year and reflects how tough the TV advertising market remains.
In terms of hardware, Roku continued to outsell the competition. The Roku operating system was the best-selling OS in the United States, and TV unit sales were higher than the next two TV operating systems combined. Roku-branded TVs have also expanded to new distribution partners, such as Target.
In its shareholder letter, Roku touted its sports additions during the quarter. In May, The Roku Channel acquired the rights to the MLB Sunday Leadoff package, which offers one game each Sunday morning of the regular season. It was the company’s first deal with one of the top major leagues in the United States for live games, and it helped Roku to populate the new MLB Zone content hub, which also features a baseball FAST channel, clips, scores from around the league, and more.
The company also rolled out improvements to its home screen to help viewers find titles quicker, using artificial intelligence to learn more about a watcher’s habits. Early results showed these improvements helped increase streaming households as well as ad impressions.
The Roku Channel accounted for 1.5% of all TV watched in June 2024, and its quarterly earnings report reflects the service’s popularity. Free streaming services are continuing to gain viewers as subscription streamers continue to raise prices, and Roku’s popular interface and wide breadth of content are helping it continue to stand out.
Roku Channel
The Roku Channel is a free live TV streaming service that provides 350+ live linear streaming channels and more than 80,000 free movies and TV shows. The library contains entertainment from several different decades, including some major hits.