Roku Platform Update Streamlines Channel Launch Process for Content Owners

Following an update to Roku’s publishing platform, content owners can launch streaming channels without having to enter a line of code, said a Wednesday Roku announcement. Roku Direct Publisher allows content owners to publish and automatically participate in search and discovery experiences on Roku devices in available regions, it said. Channels built with Roku Direct Publisher include Mashable, Rolling Stone and Us Weekly. Roku Direct Publisher is also supported by third parties, including Brightcove, JW Player, Kaltura and Ooyala. “Building streaming applications typically involves significant time, development resources and costs in order for publishers to reach and engage TV viewers effectively,” said Bill Shapiro, director-product management, Roku OS. Direct Publisher allows content owners to "get on the Roku platform quickly, develop an audience and drive monetization," he said. Roku’s search, covering more than 100 channels in the U.S., is open to all content publishers on the Roku Platform, it said, and content owners who use Roku Direct Publisher will have their content automatically included in Roku Search and My Feed. Roku’s publishing platform has added performance dashboards for each channel, giving content owners the streaming minutes for each channel, and the number of installs and uninstalls, it said. Roku Direct Publisher is available at developer.roku.com/publish along with the Roku software developer kit and XML programming framework for developing customized channels.