Why Acquiring Roku Could Solidify Facebook’s Video Strategy
Facebook has already begun digging into the TV space with Facebook Watch, so what might the social media company’s next move in video be?
Jesse Redniss, Chief Innovation Officer of Turner’s TBS and TNT networks, predicts the company might buy Roku.
“Facebook has been trying to be getting into the video space for quite sometime now,” he told Cheddar in a recent interview. “When you look at Facebook’s track record of growth, the acquisition of Insta, WhatsApp, Oculus. In some ways, in order for them to really scale into a marketplace, it’ll make a lot of sense for them to buy one of the leaders in a marketplace they want to get into.”
Roku shares fell steeply Friday after Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock, saying the streaming company is overvalued. Still, the company is trading well above its IPO price, and posted a 48 percent increase in active accounts in the third quarter, as well as a 58 percent increase in streaming hours.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/a-bold-prediction-on-why-facebook-would-acquire-roku).
The pandemic, chip shortages, and now war. Automakers around the world have been getting slammed, and it now seems like things could get worse. Several car manufacturers have announced they are halting sales or shutting down factories in Russia after nations around the world moved to tighten sanctions against the country. Lisa Whalen, Auto and Mobility Analyst for Morning Consult, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Matt Hougan, CIO at Bitwise Asset Management, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he explains what we're learning about cryptocurrencies during the Russian invasion of Ukraine and says that there's not a simple, clean narrative that can be reached.
Shared EV service Revel raised $126 million in a Series B round. Revel first came on the map in 2018 with its shared electric moped service in New York City, which has since expanded to other cities on the east coast. The company also operates an all-Tesla ride-hailing service in Manhattan.
Now, it is looking to expand its network of EV fast-charging stations, which the company calls super-hubs. Frank Reig, CEO of Revel, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
There will soon be another, lower-cost subscription option for Disney+ — but with commercials. Disney will launch the new ad-supported tier for its streaming service in the U.S. later this year and internationally in 2023, but so far there is no word on an exact launch date or price for the new service option. Tal Chalozin, co-founder and CTO of online ad tech company Innovid, joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss what the news could mean for the next chapter of the streaming wars. "I wouldn't say that are worried about subscriber growth, but they have big goals to fill," he said. "They need to go to the mid-market or the longer tail. An ad model, always proven that that that's the way to go to mass market in television."
Steve Blank, adjunct professor at Stanford University and founding faculty at Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation, joins Cheddar News to discuss technology's role in modern war.
Katie Hotze, Founder and CEO of Grocery Shopii, joins ChedHER to discuss how she's creating a platform that allows for personalized meal planning and recipes into a grocer's eCommerce platform, and her learnings from one of her very well known investors: Lance Bass.
Independent artists were caught off-guard and the Epic acquisition of Bandcamp quickly sparked fears it could ruin what many saw as their last best hope of getting paid online for their work.