After purchasing dozens of programs once distributed and produced by the short-form streaming service Quibi, hardware maker Roku says it will start offering those shows once again on its own Roku Channel under the “Roku Originals” designation.
The move covers more than 70 Quibi shows that were acquired by Roku earlier this year for an undisclosed amount of money. Previously, Quibi charged streamers at least $5 a month to access that content.
In a press release on Wednesday, Roku executives said the Quibi content would be the inaugural pieces of a much larger puzzle that will see Roku produce and acquire other content that will also exist under the “Roku Originals” brand.
“Every day, millions of viewers turn to The Roku Channel to find quality programming they love,” Sweta Patel, a top marketing executive at Roku, said in a statement. “We’re thrilled to introduce this award-winning and diverse portfolio of entertainment under the Roku Originals brand: It’s relevant, fun and thought-provoking TV….”
Roku did not offer an exact date on when the Quibi content would be distributed through the service.
The Roku Channel is Roku’s primary streaming application for distributing thousands of hours of free movies and TV shows. Roku generates revenue from this content by running short advertisements during streams.
In addition to the on-demand content, Roku produces and licenses more than 160 linear channels of television programming, including live news.
The Roku Channel is available on many of Roku’s own supported streaming devices and smart TVs as well as through standalone apps for Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android smartphones and tablets.