Roku originals

Roku’s total Q2 revenue was $764 million, up 18% year-over-year, but was relatively flat compared with last quarter, when revenue clocked in at $734 million. CFO Steve Louden was probably referring to that plateau when he warned of a TV ad spend hiatus. US advertisers are pulling back in reaction to inflation and supply chain shortages.

The Roku Channel was born in 2017 as a licensed third-party content hub to woo audiences toward streaming. Then, the channel began courting original content in 2021. The wider the content distribution, “the more engagement we can drive with our advertisers and the more we can monetize and invest in content,” said Katina Papas Wachter, head of ad sales and strategy at The Roku Channel.