Fox buys Roku for $22 billion

Roku facade on a building in Texas, USA.
Mike Blake/Reuters
Fox Corporation announced on Monday (15) that it has signed an agreement to purchase Roku, a television platform and operating system, aimed at facilitating access to streaming services.
The acquisition will be made through a combination of cash and common shares (with voting rights), in a deal worth approximately US$22 billion (R$111.8 billion). The price paid per share will be US$160 (R$813.23).
The transaction combines Fox's sports, news and entertainment content and the Tubi service with the streaming platform, The Roku Channel, the company's first-party data and direct relationship with more than 100 million homes.
The merged company will become the third largest in the US television sector in terms of audience share, the companies said.
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"Together, Fox and Roku will create a large-scale, next-generation media and technology company positioned at the intersection of two of the most important forces reshaping video consumption: the enduring primacy of live sports and news and the continued growth of streaming," the company said in a market statement.
Roku is one of the first companies to bring streaming platforms like Netflix and YouTube to television via connected devices and smart TVs.
Its business is primarily driven for revenue from advertising and subscriptions to streaming apps on its platform. Advertising is the largest component, with revenue of US$613 million (R$3.1 billion) in the first quarter - a 27% increase over the same period last year.
Upon completion, current Fox shareholders are expected to own around 73% of the merged company and Roku shareholders will own around 27%. The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2027.
According to Fox Corporation chief executive and chief executive Lachlan Murdoch, the combination will "transform the scope" of the company and is expected to bring a "significant" change to the growth profile.
"We execute this acquisition from a position of financial strength - maintaining our investment grade balance sheet, while offering our shareholders an uninterrupted capital return program in the form of share repurchases and dividends", he stated in a note.
Also according to the company, the expectation is that the transaction will accelerate Fox's digital strategy and contribute to an increase in cash flow. The company expects to save around US$400 million (around R$2 billion) per year by reducing costs, in addition to having the chance to increase its revenues.
*With information from the Reuters news agency.

Source: G1