Fox Corporation To Buy Roku For $22B

On Monday, Fox Corporation announced it will buy Roku for $22 billion. I tell ya, I’m getting real tired of all these media companies feeling like they have to buy each other. 

NBC News reports that Fox will become the third-largest player in U.S. television once the deal goes through. Fox owns Tubi, which has quickly become one of the biggest ad-supported streaming services through a combination of original programming, live sports, and the cinematic masterpieces that are Tubi movies. The Roku Channel accounts for 3% of all streaming viewing, placing it in fifth place behind YouTube, Netflix, Disney, and Amazon’s Prime Video.

“Together, FOX and Roku will create a scaled next-generation media and technology company positioned at the intersection of two of the most important forces reshaping video consumption: the enduring primacy of live sports and news, and the continued rise of streaming,” a statement released by Fox Corporation reads. “FOX and Roku are committed to continuing to operate Roku as an open, partner-friendly platform and to the continued ubiquitous distribution of FOX content.”

So what does this mean for you as the consumer? Well, that part is unclear at the moment. On the streaming end, Fox has signaled that Tubi and The Roku Channel will continue to operate as separate platforms. I’m curious what this means for Roku streaming devices and TVs. Fox Corp is not a consumer goods company, so the acquisition of the company outright, and of just its streaming offerings, is interesting, to say the least.

Is every Roku device going to come preloaded with Fox content? Is Roku City now going to be inundated with ads for Fox News and Fox Nation shows? While my Apple TV is my preferred streaming device (ya boy is bougie, I won’t deny it), I do have a Roku TV and would prefer not to see Sean Hannity’s face against my will. 

The acquisition comes shortly after the Department of Justice (DOJ) approved Paramount-Skydance’s $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. That deal is concerning for a multitude of reasons, including how many jobs will likely be lost in the merger, the massive debt load it will create, and the fact that one company will own both CBS News and CNN. Considering the seemingly unending waves of controversy that have inundated CBS News since Paramount was purchased by David Ellison’s Skydance, there’s reason to be concerned about that last part.

The fact that the DOJ can look at that and say there’s no “harm to competition or American consumers” makes it even harder to take the department seriously under the Trump administration. 

While these may seem like boring, corporate transactions, it’s alarming that fewer people control the purse strings of what does and doesn’t get made. I will say the cultural dominance of YouTube does give me some hope for the future. YouTube is the dominant streaming service, and while the platform has its fair share of problems, it still is the most democratized media platform. The box-office success of Obsession and Backrooms, both from directors who got their start on YouTube, shows that a path to success outside these companies is possible. 

These mergers will either be the dawn of a new, monopolized era of media production not seen since before the Paramount Decrees or the last gasp of media monoliths as more creative voices take the means of production and distribution into their own hands. I’m really rooting for the latter, y’all. 

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