Streaming video platform Roku announced a new ad-free, subscription video service called Howdy that costs just $2.99 a month. But Roku stock slid on Tuesday.
While other subscription video services like Netflix are raising prices to support ever-growing content libraries, Roku is taking a less-is-more approach with its new low-cost offering.
Roku's Howdy service will feature content from inaugural partners Lionsgate, Warner Bros. Discovery and FilmRise, along with select Roku Original titles. It will be available in the U.S. today.
Howdy promises "thousands of titles and nearly 10,000 hours of entertainment," Roku said in a news release. Sample content includes "Mad Max: Fury Road," "The Blind Side," "Weeds" and "Kids in the Hall," as well as rom-coms, medical dramas, '90s comedies, feel-good classics and more.
"Priced at less than a cup of coffee, Howdy is ad-free and designed to complement, not compete with, premium services," Roku founder and CEO Anthony Wood said. "We're meeting a real need for consumers who want to unwind with their favorite movies and shows uninterrupted and on their terms. Howdy is a natural step for us at Roku, extending our mission to make better TV for everyone, by making it affordable, accessible, and built for how people watch today."
On the stock market today, Roku stock fell 2.6% to close at 83.64.
Last week, Roku delivered a beat-and-raise second-quarter earnings report. The San Jose, Calif.-based company earned 7 cents a share on sales of $1.11 billion. Analysts had expected Roku to lose 15 cents a share on sales of $1.07 billion. In the year-earlier period, Roku lost 24 cents a share on sales of $968 million.
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