Fox Corporation to acquire streaming platform Roku in USD22 billion
New York, June 15
,: Fox Corporation is buying streaming platform Roku in a USD22 billion deal that would make the American media giant a force to reckon with in the live news and sports as well as streaming industry.
Fox will acquire Roku for USD160 a share in a combination of cash and FOX Class A common stock, the company said in a release.
"This is a defining moment for FOX, and a natural extension of the deliberate and focused strategy we have been executing for nearly a decade," Lachlan Murdoch, executive chair and CEO, Fox Corporation said.
The deal will see Fox paying USD96 in cash and 0.9693 shares of Fox Class A common stock for each Roku Class A and Class B share.
"In 2020, we acquired Tubi and under our stewardship it has become one of the most successful businesses in streaming. Today, we take the next step: bringing together the most valuable live content portfolio in video consumption with the preeminent streaming platform through which America watches it," Lachlan added.
The transaction is committed to keep Roku as an open, partner-friendly platform that will also distribute Fox content.
"The deal will combine Fox's sports, news and entertainment content and the Tubi service, with Roku's leading connected TV platform, The Roku Channel, first-party data and direct relationship with more than 100 million global streaming households," Fox Corporation said.
The deal will make Fox a dominant player in the fast-growing streaming and connected TV space combining the breadth of content that Fox has with the streaming platform's technology and consumer interface.
"I'm incredibly proud of what our team has built, and the combination with FOX is an extraordinary opportunity to accelerate our vision, scale faster and innovate more aggressively for viewers, partners and advertisers," Anthony Wood, founder and CEO of Roku, said.
The transaction is subject to a nod from both Fox and Roku shareholders and US and some non-US regulatory approvals.
— ANI
Reader Comments
$96 per share in cash and stock for each Roku share? That's a significant premium. But Roku has been struggling with profitability lately, so this might be a lifeline. Fox gets a huge installed base of devices and The Roku Channel. I just hope the open platform promise holds true—otherwise consumers lose choice.
Interesting deal 🧐 Fox has a strong position in live sports and news, and Roku is the top streaming platform in the US. But I wonder how this will affect Roku's current partnerships with other content providers. Also, $22 billion is huge—hope Fox doesn't end up with too much debt trying to compete with tech giants. India has similar dynamics with Jio and Disney+ Hotstar.
Fox buying Roku makes strategic sense—they need a direct consumer relationship and Roku has 100 million global households. But $22 billion? That's a lot of money for a company that still relies heavily on hardware margins. The real value is in the ad platform and data. Reminds me of how Indian companies like Reliance are vertically integrating in digital.
Fox is clearly betting on the future of streaming and connected TV. Tubi's success gave them confidence, and now they want Roku's platform and user base. As someone who follows Indian media, I see parallels with how Zee and Sony are trying to consolidate. But mergers like this often lead to price increases. Hope regulatory approvals ensure fair competition.
This deal could fundamentally change how Americans watch TV. Fox has sports and news (which people watch live
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