Roku to close adult entertainment loophole

Roku has confirmed that it is closing a loophole that has allowed non-certified apps – including apps from adult content providers – to operate on its platform.

Earlier this week, the company announced that it is launching an independent developer kit (IDK) that will allow developers to “extend the utility of the Roku OS and facilitate even more innovation across the platform.” 

In that announcement, Roku confirmed that it will remove non-certified channels from its platform by March 2022 and it has since emerged that this will see adult entertainment apps impacted by the change.

So-called ‘non-certified channels’ are not available in the Roku channel store as the company says they are largely used for testing channels ahead of their official launch. Such apps however have been available via a Private Channels feature where users can access apps with a direct link or code.

However, this feature is being removed as Roku says that the IDK makes non-certified channels “no longer necessary.”

The change is not as simple as it would be on a platform like Android TV, which allows users to sideload apps with relative ease. Roku users can sideload apps, but it is restricted to one at a time.