Streaming platform Roku is launching in the UK, boasting that it will be one of the first players capable of delivering the newly launched Netflix.
Two of the best selling players in the United States are being made available to consumers on the UK and Ireland, the Roku LT and the Roku 2 XS, which will initially be offered through Amazon.
UK viewers will be able to receive an eclectic mix of content that in addition to Netflix includes live and on-demand sports from MLB.TV and Ultimate Fighting Championship organisation; music from Classical TV and the radio portal TuneIn; photos and videos from Facebook and Flickr; news and entertainment from WSJ Live from the Wall Street Journal, FoxNews.com. UK customers will also be able to view Sony’s ad supported movies and series channel Crackle.
“Roku launched the first ever streaming player to deliver Netflix to consumers in the U.S. and now we are among the first to bring Netflix to residents of the UK and Ireland,” said Clive Hudson, vice president and general manager for Europe at Roku. “In addition to Netflix, we are launching with a variety of entertainment channels and look forward to expanding our content selection in the same way that we have in the US where we have more than 400 channels today.”
Roku is promising the announcement of major content deals by the time product is available in the UK and Ireland.
The entry-level Roku LT supports up to 720p high-definition video while the Roku 2 XS supports up to 1080p high-definition video and includes an Ethernet port in addition to Wi-Fi. The Roku 2 XS also has gaming support and includes a USB port for playing music, videos and photos off of any USB drive.
Both the Roku LT and the Roku 2 XS connect to standard-definition or high-definition TVs via RCA or HDMI.
