Regular readers may remember that three months ago, we noticed that Roku was looking for a lead production attorney to "work on its expanding slate of original content", having acquired Quibi’s content library of 75 shows to appear on its free, ad-supported Roku Channel.
Today, Roku announced it will debut the first slate of 30 Roku Originals on The Roku Channel (which is barely more than one year old itself) on 20th May, in celebration of Streaming Day – aka the launch date of the very first Roku streaming player, in 2008.
The Roku Originals launch lineup features 30 titles, including award-winning and scripted series such as Die Hart, #FreeRayshawn (starring Laurence Fishburne, main image) and Reno 911!, documentaries such as Blackballed and Big Rad Wolf, plus alternative and reality programming, including Punk’d and Chrissy's Court. Roku Originals will be available exclusively on The Roku Channel in the UK – but if you already have that, there's nothing more to sign up to. It's all free.
Want to see more? Helpfully, Roku has knocked up a montage featuring some of the action – and no shortage of A-list celebs – so you can get an idea of what expect.
Again, the Roku Channel will be the exclusive destination for viewers in the UK to stream Roku Originals for free.
In addition to the 30 Roku Originals announced for the May lineup, more Roku Originals will debut on The Roku Channel later this year.
“As The Roku Channel grows, we will continue to be even more creative and expansive in sourcing great content that will perform well in a free, advertising-supported model, while delivering an array of incredible, quality entertainment for our users to enjoy,” said Sweta Patel, vice president of engagement growth marketing at Roku.
In a further celebration of Streaming Day, Roku has also announced a series of promotional offers for customers in the UK. You will be able to get £5 off the Roku Express and £10 off Roku Streaming Stick+ until the 25th May, and the Roku Streambar will be available for £30 off from 19th May until 8th June.
How do you get your Roku on? The Roku Channel is available on Roku streaming players, Hisense Roku TV models (such as the five-star Hisense Roku R50A7200GTUK) plus Now – formerly called Now TV – and Sky Q devices.
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