Roku turned in first-quarter 2025 earnings that edged out Wall Street forecasts and announced a $185 million deal to buy Frndly TV, a low-cost subscription streaming service that offers live TV, on-demand video and cloud-based DVR.
For the first quarter, Roku total revenue was $1.02 billion, up 16%. Net loss was $27.4 million, or a loss of 19 cents per share, an improvement over a net loss of $50.9 million a year ago. Analyst consensus estimates had pegged $1.01 billion in revenue and a net loss of 25 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
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Roku’s acquisition of Frndly TV is expected to be completed in the second quarter, pending usual closing conditions. The total purchase price is $185 million in cash, which includes $75 million held back that is tied to meeting performance goals and milestones over the next two years, according to Roku.
Based in Denver, Frndly TV was founded in 2019 and bill itself as “the most affordable live TV streaming service.” It offers subscribers access to more than 50 live TV channels, including A&E, Hallmark Channel, History and Lifetime, plus thousands of hours of on-demand content, starting at $6.99/month.
Frndly TV’s team, including co-founder and CEO Andy Karofsky, will stay on with Roku after the transaction closes. In addition to Roku devices, Frndly TV will continue to be available on all devices and platforms where it is currently available, including Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Google TV, Apple TV, Samsung, Vizio, the web (and via Chromecast), and Android and iOS mobile devices.
“Frndly TV’s impressive growth and expertise in direct-to-consumer subscription services make it a compelling addition to Roku,” Anthony Wood, founder and CEO of Roku, said in announcing the deal. “This acquisition supports our focus on growing platform revenue and Roku-billed subscriptions, with a live content offering our users love at an industry-leading price point.”
Looking ahead, Roku said that, “While there is more macro uncertainty than normal, we are providing our best outlook based on our current visibility and what we are observing in our business.” For Q2, it estimates total net revenue will be about $1.07 billion, representing 11% year-over-year growth. That’s just shy of analyst consensus estimates of $1.09 billion for the June quarter.