Roku launches Howdy, a $2.99 ad-free streaming service

Roku has unveiled a new subscription-based streaming service named Howdy, which aims to provide an ad-free viewing experience for just $2.99 per month. This innovative platform boasts an impressive library of nearly 10,000 hours of content sourced from various partners, including major players like Lionsgate, Warner Bros. Discovery, and FilmRise, in addition to select Roku Original titles. Subscribers can look forward to enjoying popular films and series such as “Mad Max: Fury Road,” “The Blind Side,” “Weeds,” and “Kids in the Hall.” The service will also feature a diverse range of genres, catering to fans of romantic comedies, medical dramas, and classic ‘90s comedies. Anthony Wood, Roku's founder and CEO, stated, “Howdy is ad-free and designed to complement, not compete with, premium services,” highlighting the service's goal to enhance the streaming landscape without overshadowing existing options. This launch follows Roku's recent acquisition of Frndly TV for $185 million, which offers live TV, on-demand video, and cloud-based DVR features. Howdy joins Roku's existing portfolio, which includes The Roku Channel, a popular free, ad-supported streaming service that currently leads the FAST (Free Ad-Supported Streaming Television) market, outperforming rivals like Tubi and Pluto TV. According to Roku, their platform attracts over 125 million daily users. The launch of Howdy is expected to leverage Roku's extensive reach, as the company reported surpassing 90 million streaming households earlier this year. In their recent financial report, Roku showcased a robust revenue growth of 15% for the second quarter, with streaming hours reaching 35.4 billion, marking a significant increase of 5.2 billion hours from the previous year.