Roku Launches Ad-Free Low-Cost Subscription Streaming Service

Say howdy to… Howdy! Roku has launched a new ad-free subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) streamer with access to everything from award-winning favorites like Mad Max: Fury Road, The Blind Side, and Weeds, to ’90s comedies and feel-good classics, in a library loaded with thousands of titles. Howdy, as the service is known, is “priced at less than a cup of coffee,” says Roku founder and CEO Anthony Wood. He also asserts that Roku’s latest offering will complement premium services already on the market — not compete with them.

Howdy is initially launching in the United States under the Roku umbrella alongside The Roku Channel, which houses a variety of titles, including a few underrated gems, and is the most-watched free, ad-supported television (FAST) service in the country, according to Comscore. The newest service will offer nearly 10,000 hours of entertainment from well-known distributors such as Lionsgate, Warner Bros. Discovery, and FilmRise, alongside Roku Original titles, which may help to attract subscribers in what is an already crowded landscape.

With a wide variety of streaming services currently available, including Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+, and Hulu (to name but a few), platforms are constantly competing for subscribers to come out on top of the streaming wars. Roku’s Howdy is designed as an affordable service, priced at only $2.99 per month, which is not just an introductory or trial price, per a press release announcing the launch. “We’re meeting a real need for consumers who want to unwind with their favorite movies and shows uninterrupted, and on their terms,” Wood said in a statement. “Howdy is a natural step for us at Roku, extending our mission to make better TV for everyone, by making it affordable, accessible, and built for how people watch today.”

What Are Howdy’s Main Benefits?

Roku

In summary, Howdy intends to stand out from its competitors — or, should we say, acquaintances — by providing subscribers with a growing library of wide-ranging content that they are sure to love and that can be watched with zero interruptions via an accessible and affordable service. It will initially be available on the Roku platform with plans to roll out on mobile and third-party platforms in the not-so-distant future. The main benefits that help to set the service apart from other offerings on the market are listed by Business Wire as such:

• Only $2.99/month – everyday low price
• High-quality, ad-free experience – stream with no interruptions
• Award-winning content and fan favorites – easily find something for everyone
• Cancel any time – no contracts or hidden fees, easy to start and stop

Howdy appears to be coming out of the gate strong with a diverse range of movies and TV shows to cater to a broad audience. A preview video of the service showed Elvis, Joyful Noise, Transporter 3, Letters to Juliet, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, The Great Debaters, Bombshell, Fruitvale Station, Dirty Dancing, American Psycho, The Graduate, Reservoir Dogs, Apocalypse Now Redux, Party Down, Dirty Grandpa, Best in Show, Hell on Wheels, Red 2, Transporter 3, Southland, Nurse Jackie, Stranger than Fiction, Unforgiven, Crank, The Divergent Series: Allegiant, Rabbit Hole, Life of a King, Redemption, Escape Plan, and Blade for anyone who is tired of waiting for the MCU’s ill-fated reboot with Mahershala Ali as the titular vampire hunter.

Sources: Business Wire, Comscore

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