Roku is in the ad business, not the hardware business, says CEO

Roku sells more dedicated streaming devices than perhaps any other company in the world. It's been estimated that there are more Rokus in US households than there are Fire TVs, Chromecasts, or Apple TVs. (Amazon strongly disagrees, but has never shared any sales numbers.) But here's something that might surprise you: the money that Roku makes from its hardware lineup isn't enough to sustain the company's business.

There's just not a lot of profit margin to be had when your most popular products hover between $30 and $70; Roku's most expensive player is $100. Last quarter, for the first time in its history, Roku made more revenue from advertising and licensing than device sales.

CEO Anthony Wood was frank and open about his company's...

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