Roku launched the Roku Channel in Mexico — the free streaming service’s first expansion beyond the U.S., Canada and U.K.
In Mexico, the Roku Channel is available starting Thursday (Oct. 13), offering access to thousands of free, ad-supported movies and TV episodes. The lineup includes exclusive access to more than 30 Roku original series, including four-part thriller “Operación Marea Negra” from eOne; crime drama “Natural Born Narco” from Telemundo; and nature docu-series “Mamas,” narrated in Spanish by Zoë Saldaña (produced by Plimsoll Productions, Deep Blue Productions and Cinestar Pictures).
Titles available at launch include “Los Pitufos en la aldea perdida,” “Blade Runner 2049,” “El Sorprendente Hombre Araña 2,” “Psicópata Americano,” “Draft Day,” “El Patriota” “El lado luminoso de la vida,” “Lluvia de hamburguesas 2,” “Hombres de negro II,” and “Whip It.”
The Roku Channel is available to owners of a Roku streaming player or Roku TV model — completely for free, without the need for a login or subscription. Content in Roku Channel Mexico is licensed from the company’s existing global partners including Sony Pictures and Lionsgate as well as local partners such as Telefórmula. In addition to on-demand programming, the Roku Channel in Mexico also offers more than 25 live TV channels at launch, including those from Telefórmula, Canela TV, Novelisima and Runtime Espanol.
The launch comes after Roku in June debuted Espacio Latino, a hub for Spanish-language content on the Roku Channel in the U.S. The company earns the bulk of its revenue through ad sales and subscription partnerships, managing its streaming-devices business as a loss leader to attract new viewers to the platform.
“Launching the Roku Channel in Mexico represents a pivotal moment for our business as we continue to expand internationally and offer streamers free access to great entertainment and news content,” said Rob Holmes, Roku’s VP of programming.
Free content is one of the most searched-for categories on Roku’s platform, “so we are pleased to meet that demand with the launch of The Roku Channel in Mexico,” added Mirjam Laux, VP of international advertising and content at Roku.
Roku also touted the upcoming premiere of one of its biggest original films to date: “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story,” a mock biopic starring Daniel Radcliffe as the famous musical parodist, which bows Nov. 4 on the Roku Channel.
Roku streaming players, like the Roku Express, are available in Mexico starting at 899 pesos ($45). Roku also works with TV brands such as Hisense, TCL, ATVIO, HKPRO, InFocus, JVC, Philips, Sanyo, Sharp, Aiwa, Daewoo and Sansui, which sell Roku TV models in sizes ranging from 32- to 65-inches in HD, 4K and 8K Ultra HD.
