Roku reports 68% year-on-year increase in streaming hours in Q4

Roku reported a 40% year-on-year increase in active accounts and a 68% increase in streaming hours in preliminary data for the fourth quarter of 2018.

The streaming company disclosed the stats ahead of business meetings at this year’s CES in Las Vegas, claiming that active accounts topped 27 million in Q4.

Fourth quarter streaming hours were an estimated 7.3 billion hours. This brought the total number of Roku streaming hours for full-year 2018 to about 24 billion, up 61% compared to 2017.

“Strong active account growth and accelerating streaming hours point to consumers’ growing enthusiasm for streaming, making Roku America’s largest and fastest growing TV streaming distribution platform,” said Roku CEO Anthony Wood.

“In 2018, we maintained our leadership in streaming players, licensed smart TVs and TV streaming hours. Roku continues to bring viewers more choice, great value, a compelling user experience – and lots of TV fun.”

Separately, Roku made two CES announcements relating to new Roku OS-powered TV sets.

Westinghouse Electronics will be the newest TV brand to join the Roku TV licensing programme. It is due to launch HD Westinghouse Roku TV models in the first half of 2019 and 4K later in the year.

Meanwhile, Roku will work with TCL to make 8K TCL Roku TVs, which are expected to be available in late 2019.

Roku said that it is developing an 8K hardware reference design that TCL will be the first to license. It is also expanding its 4K and HDR hardware reference design to include far-field microphones for voice search and control.

Roku is due to announce its full fourth quarter and full year 2018 financial results, along with its 2019 outlook, in February.