economy
Fox to acquire streaming platform Roku for $22bn
Combined company will become third-largest in US television by share of viewing as media landscape shifts dramatically
TL;DR
- Fox Corporation is acquiring Roku for $22bn ($160 per share) in a mix of cash and stock.
- The combined entity will be the third-largest in US television by viewing share.
- The acquisition aims to bolster Fox's live sports and news streaming capabilities.
- Roku's platform reaches over 100 million global streaming households, including over half of US broadband households.
- Fox intends to operate Roku as an open platform, supporting rival content providers.
- Roku founder and CEO Anthony Wood will join the combined company's board.
- The deal is expected to be accretive to free cash flow per share by the second full year after closing and achieve $400mn in cost synergies.
- Fox will finance the cash portion with new debt and existing cash, securing $12bn in bridge financing from Morgan Stanley Senior Funding.
- The acquisition occurs amid a significant reshaping of the US media landscape, with other major deals like Paramount's acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery.
- Analysts note challenges for Roku due to increasing competition from Google TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Vizio OS.