While YouTube may not be doing so well, the same cannot be said for Roku, the company that produces digital media players for streaming TV, movies, music, and even some games. In addition to these devices, some Smart TVs come with integrated Roku software. Regardless of the Roku device being used, they all offer instant access to major on-demand multimedia service providers.

The grow up

Roku, which went public in mid-2017, reported its results for the fourth quarter of 2022 last week. Roku reported fourth-quarter revenues of $867.1 million, compared to an estimated $801.7 million, and EBITDA, or gross operating margin, went from a negative $95.2 million to a positive $86.7 million.

Roku’s platform business drove its revenue growth, increasing 5% during the quarter to reach $731.3 million. The platform segment includes the company’s advertising and subscription/transactional businesses.

2022 ended with 70 million active accounts, up 16% year-over-year, after adding 10 million net new accounts, i.e., those who did not cancel. For the entire year, streaming hours on Roku reached a record 87.4 billion hours, with 19% growth. In the fourth quarter, Roku user streaming hours hit a record high of 23.9 billion hours, also up 23% year-over-year.

The survey by Roku

According to a globally conducted survey, 72% of streaming customers reported feeling frustrated when finding something to watch, and 25% took more than 10 minutes to choose something. This is the secret to Roku’s success. In fact, the power of tvOS as the guardian of the living room is fully highlighted in the release of this earnings, helping you find what to watch. “In the fourth quarter, streaming hours from the main screen menu grew twice as fast as overall platform hours. In short, in the era of video content abundance, helping people select content works. It’s better not to forget, not just for video.”