Fox closes $22 billion deal to buy Roku streaming platform

Fox Corporation said Friday that it has completed its $22 billion acquisition of Roku, the smart TV platform company, closing months earlier than the first half of 2027 target the company had previously set. The cash-and-stock transaction, first announced in June, took effect with Roku shares halted on the Nasdaq stock exchange.

The acquisition gives Fox control of Roku's connected TV platform, which is installed in more than 100 million US households. Roku generated more than $727 million in advertising revenue in the September quarter, up 23% from the year before, the company said Monday. Fox already owns Tubi, a free ad-supported streaming service, and the Fox One streaming service; with Roku it also gains The Roku Channel. Business Insider reported that The Roku Channel and Tubi are the second- and third-largest free streaming services by US TV viewership, behind YouTube.

Fox expects about $400 million in annual cost savings within two years from the acquisition, according to its announcement Friday. Nielsen data cited by Business Insider shows that Roku, Tubi, and Fox's broadcast and cable networks, including Fox News and FS1, together generate more US TV viewership than Netflix or NBCUniversal. Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch said the deal will let the company bring Fox Sports, news content, and local stations to Roku, and he expects to grow viewership by combining Roku technology, Roku's platform, the content on The Roku Channel, and Fox's content. In a statement Friday, Murdoch said, "Beginning today, our top priority for the combined company is to continue to relentlessly serve audiences and partners, while reinforcing the openness and choice that is the essence of the Roku platform."

Roku's platform will remain open to third-party content partners, according to Roku founder Anthony Wood, who now serves on Fox's board of directors. Wood said, "We started Roku more than two decades ago to give people a better way to watch TV, and that mission doesn't change today. What does change is our reach and resources." He added that Fox "has a deep respect for Roku's culture and wholly shares our commitment to staying open to every content partner." The Verge noted that while the deal may change what Roku showcases on its platform, it does not appear to affect the open nature of its streaming ecosystem.

Fox said in September that the US Department of Justice had requested more information about the Roku deal, a step the company called "expected." Completion on Friday came well ahead of the original schedule. The purchase deepens Fox's position in free, ad-supported streaming at a time when paid streaming services are raising prices and consumers are turning to free alternatives, according to Business Insider. Fox sold its 21st Century Fox film and television studio to Disney for $71 billion in 2019, The Washington Post reported.