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Roku begins beefing up original content offering

(Image: Roku, Inc. / Graphic: The Desk)

Just a few weeks after announcing it would acquire dozens of shows from now-defunct streaming service Quibi, Roku has lifted the curtain on a new original series that will soon be added to its ad-supported streaming service.

“Cypher,” a new police procedural starring Martin Wall, will land on the Roku Channel this Friday, the company said in a blog post.

Cypher joins more than 40,000 free movies and TV episodes available on the Roku Channel, an ad-supported streaming TV service that was once exclusive to Roku users but has since become more-broadly available to viewers on other platforms.

The show lands as Roku continues to ready the launch of several dozen original programs acquired from Quibi in January. Once integrated into the Roku Channel, around 75 shows will become free to stream for the first time since they were distributed by Quibi last year.Ro

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About the Author:

Matthew Keys

Matthew Keys is an award-winning journalist with more than 10 years of experience covering the business of television and radio broadcasting, streaming services and the overall media industry. In addition to his work as publisher of The Desk, Matthew contributes regularly to StreamTV Insider and KnowTechie, and has worked for several well-known news organizations, including Thomson Reuters, McNaughton Newspapers, Grasswire, Comstock's magazine, KTXL-TV and KGO-TV. Matthew is a member of IRE, a trade organization for investigative reporters and editors, and is based in Northern California.

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