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SDRNews: Right On Roku- Will Oprah Come Calling ?

November 23rd, 2009 Administrator

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Right On, Roku ! Oprah May Come Calling

by Andrew McCaskey
The First Step for Oprah ?

Early adopter that I am, I’ve had the Roku box for well over a year. And I have to admit it was a $99 curiosity for the first six months or so – offering VHS quality video. But around December of last year, a firmware upgrade installed a new codec and it was suddenly a new ball game. It’s not as sharp as the AppleTV but from a business standpoint, the price is right.

The Channel Store launched today is one of the most exciting opportunities to come down the line – and potentially, it is going to be huge for anyone who is involved in New Media. The efforts by Netflix to get their silicon into BluRay players, flat screen TV’s and through affordable players like the Roku are going to represent a critical mass in destabilizing of the cable industry.

All of the publicity in the “Oprah Leaves Network Television” saga mentions the shift to cable by the Oprah Winfrey Network. She is certainly astute enough to seize upon some technology to cover her bets in case she wants to move beyond the technology that the purchase of the Discovery Network offers. Don’t be surprised if one day she gives away a Roku box to everyone in the audience. Not as exciting as the Pontiac, but with Oprah’s blessing, it would most certainly be around longer than Pontiac turned out to be.

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