- Fox buys Roku for $22 billion
- The deal will combine Fox’s network with the Roku TV platform
- The deal closes in 2027, but Roku users are already looking for alternative streaming devices
Fox Corp has announced a new deal that will see the TV giant acquire streaming company Roku for a staggering $22 billion – a deal that will undoubtedly shake up the entertainment sphere.
The companies announced the deal today (June 15, 2026), and it will mark the next step in Fox’s plan to become more competitive in the streaming world, CNBC reports. The deal will combine Fox’s abundance of news, sports and entertainment networks with the Roku TV platform, The Roku Channel and first-party data to reach the 100 million households using Roku.
Additionally, this will also combine one of the top free streaming services, Tubi, which Fox acquired for $440 million back in 2020.
Under the deal, Fox will acquire Roku for $160 per share in a cash-and-stock transaction, and the company says it has already secured $12 billion in debt to finance it. The deal has already been approved by the boards of both companies and is expected to close in the first half of 2027, pending regulatory approvals.
During an analyst call, Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch described the deal as a “defining moment” for Fox and “a natural extension of the deliberate and focused strategy we’ve executed for nearly a decade.”
He added, “Today we’re taking the next step: bringing together the most valuable live content portfolio in video consumption with the preeminent streaming platform through which America watches,” as Variety reports.
As for Roku CEO and founder Anthony Wood, he will join Fox’s board and take on a “continuing role” as a result of the acquisition. “I’m incredibly proud of what our team has built, and the combination with Fox is an extraordinary opportunity to accelerate our vision, scale faster and innovate more aggressively for viewers, partners and advertisers,” Wood shared in a statement, which Variety also reported.
Fox’s merger with Roku is the company’s first major deal since Disney bought Fox’s entertainment business, which saw recognizable franchises including The Simpsons and X-Menas well as programming from Fox-owned channels National Geographic and FX Networks, are coming to Disney+.
For years, Fox hasn’t quite been able to compete with streaming giants like Netflix and YouTube. Combining its networks with Roku opens another gateway for Fox to expand into streaming and subscriptions, but Roku users are already considering alternatives.
For some Roku users, it’s all downhill from here
Entertainment companies seem to be merging quite a bit recently. The agreement between Paramount+ and Warner Bros. Discovery has now been cleared by the US Department of Justice, but Fox’s acquisition of Roku has especially shaken things up for Roku users. They’ve already been quite vocal about their concerns about what this deal could mean — especially regarding the controversial Fox News.
According to a user on Reddit, their Roku device has apparently been pushing ads for Fox News, suggesting that this deal has been in the works for a while. “Time for a new streaming stick,” they added. But it’s not just the ads that users are worried about.
Other users flocked to the Reddit thread to share their concerns, and many believe Fox News’ ubiquity will only escalate from here. One user says that Fox could gradually “show their propaganda and misinformation more and more by defaulting users to Fox News”.
Another user pointed out that Roku is a popular, budget-friendly streaming option that’s also built into a lot of cheaper smart TVs, giving Fox another easy entry into this particular market.
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