Roku has teamed with AOL to create a news channel for Roku box owners.
More and more news outlets are creating video news shorts. Just as AOL, Google, Yahoo and other companies aggregate print news, AOL On aggregates video news clips. The company said it is pulling clips from a pool of 1,000 publishers including the Wall Street Journal, The Associated Press, Reuters, BBCNews, HuffPost Live, Newsy, E!, CNET, Engadget, ET, StoryHunter and globalpost.
Now with access to AOL On, Roku is providing a news service that can be accessed through its home screen on Roku boxes.
“News is among the fastest growing categories on the Roku platform and this partnership with AOL makes it even easier for customers to find and start watching a variety of news videos,” said Steve Shannon, general manager of content and services, Roku. “This is the first integrated news service on a TV streaming platform and we expect for it to be a big hit.”
“By delivering premium content from AOL’s owned properties and from our syndication partners, we’re able to provide Roku users with on-demand access to hundreds of continuously-refreshed news videos from the moment they start watching,” said Rob Delacruz, general manager of connected TV and mobile video at AOL.
The integrated news service powered by AOL On is available today free of charge in the U.S. on the new Roku 2, Roku 1 and Roku LT players, and will automatically roll out as a free software update in the coming weeks to all current-generation Roku devices including the Roku 3, Roku 2 XS, Roku 2 XD, Roku 2 HD, Roku HD (model 2500) and Roku LT (models 2400 and 2450) players as well as the Roku Streaming Stick, Roku said.
In addition, AOL On is an existing channel in the Roku Channel Store hosting AOL’s complete video offering and a curated video hub spanning 14 content categories, including food, business, entertainment, style, technology, travel, health, and more.
