The Roku original is here, but it's not entirely original

The Roku original is here, but it's not entirely original

Remember Quibi? Don't remember it? That doesn't matter, because Roku Originals is here, and Roku has announced that Roku Originals will be the new brand name for its content, following the purchase of Quibi's library in January.

Roku Originals will launch in May and will eventually include original programming produced specifically for the Roku Channel. In recent months, Roku has been adding original content to its free, ad-supported outlets. And last month, Roku Channel announced its first exclusively licensed series, the FBI drama "Cypher,"

which will be available on Roku Channel's website.

Roku Channel has doubled its audience in the past year, reaching an estimated 63 million U.S. households in Q4 2020, the company reports. The channel offers 40,000 free movies and programs and more than 165 free live linear television channels. Films currently in rotation include classics like "Bewitched" to recent hits like "The Wolf of Wall Street."

The new Roku Originals brand will launch with over 75 Quibi shows, including 12 previously unreleased titles. One of them is Steven Spielberg's After Dark, a horror series that will be available only after dark. The other is Slugfest, a comic book documentary series by the Russo brothers.

Roku's announcement makes it clear that these programs can be viewed on any size screen; when Quibi launched, it was mobile-only (although it later scrambled to make it available on TVs). This was just one of many problems with the doomed streaming service, which ranks among the biggest technological failures of 2020.

But while the app, the technology, and the very premise of Quibi itself were all suspect, its content was actually quite good (it even won an Emmy). And now these shows have a new brand and home.

"Every day, millions of viewers turn to Roku Channel to find quality programming they love. "Appropriate, entertaining, and thought-provoking television programming for everyone, presented by top Hollywood talent like Anna Kendrick, Chrissy Teigen, Lena Waithe, Idris Elba, Kevin Hart, and Liam Hemsworth, Roku Channel is an incredible, free programming, and we are excited to bring this premium content to the biggest screens in the home."

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