$2.99 for now
ad free for now
This is step 1 of enshittification, offer a product thats cheaper and higher quality than your competition. Once they have a userbase they’ll start tiering their service.
Roku launches Howdy, a $2.99 ad-free streaming service
Submitted 1 day ago by themachinestops@lemmy.dbzer0.com to technology@lemmy.world
https://techcrunch.com/2025/08/05/roku-launches-howdy-a-2-99-ad-free-streaming-service/
Comments
FauxLiving@lemmy.world 1 day ago
TwinTitans@lemmy.world 20 hours ago
Gamepass anyone? 🤣🤣
dil@lemmy.zip 1 day ago
def tryna get ppl to go well its cheaper than a debrid service
ayyy@sh.itjust.works 1 day ago
The same Roku that added mandatory ads to their home screen after selling the product and promising not to do exactly that?
antonim@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 day ago
moobythegoldensock@infosec.pub 1 day ago
Roku Channel is also ad-free with PiHole.
flop_leash_973@lemmy.world 21 hours ago
It’s not the $3/month ad free Tubi type service that is the bad part. It is the part where it is attached to Roku. That company that proven the kind of trash they are already.
mojofrododojo@lemmy.world 22 hours ago
not that I’m going to use this service, considering roku’s sleazy history of thrusting ads into anything they build, but looking at the content: eh, lots of solid b material… but half of it has $ next to the title.
what the fuck is the point of showing you THE CATALOG if half the shit requires more money? I despise this on Amazon as well. If it’s not on the service i’m already subscribed to why the fuck are you cluttering up the UI?
sure, if people want that, let them turn it on, but by default? scumfucks.
SoftestSapphic@lemmy.world 1 day ago
Just use pirate bay or soulseek
BagOfHeavyStones@piefed.social 1 day ago
Roku via telstra bricked by Telstra TV box that I was using to watch mp4 channels on an older set.
Never trusting that brand again.
TPB FTW.
oppy1984@lemdro.id 1 day ago
When I saw the ad for this on my Roku I thought it was just some western channel based on the name and color scheme. It wasn’t until I saw an article about it that I even knew what it was. I looked into it, my thoughts are, terrible branding, terrible marketing, terrible discovery on the website.
I don’t see anything that I don’t already own that I would want to watch, but since the website search sucks I don’t know if there’s more to see or not.
Based on all that, I’m not even willing to blow $2.99 one time to see if it gets better in the app because I doubt it will.
mic_check_one_two@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 day ago
Jellyfin/Plex with the *Arr stack is still the better option. A little bit of setup, but then blissful ad-free self-hosted streaming.
jjlinux@lemmy.zip 19 hours ago
Your point? 🤔
network_switch@lemmy.ml 1 day ago
I’m not negative on this. Streaming apps are easy to cancel and move to something else. Roku will probably raise the price someday and when it’s too high, shift off. I checked Roku originals on Wikipedia and they have barely anything significant. A small amount of feature films they have distribution rights to. TV shows, nothing original narrative seems like a hit. Then a bunch of reality shows and like cooking shows.
They’re a very long way away from being able to get subscribers on the basis of their original content. Not even Sony has a general streaming service and under them are a bunch of hit TV shows and movies along with their decades of back catalog. Not planning to sub but if I’m insanely bored, I can sub for a month and find some old TV show comedy to put in the background
cupcakezealot@piefed.blahaj.zone 1 day ago
i had no idea roku bought frndly
MeekerThanBeaker@lemmy.world 1 day ago
$2.99, then $4.99, then $6.99, then $9.99, then $9.99 with commercials and $14.99 without.
Howdy ho!
Dyskolos@lemmy.zip 1 day ago
Lol. Wanted to comment exactly that. Netflix drove me to piracy again after I went legit after 25yrs of piracy. Won’t fall for this streaming-bullshit again. Go fuck yourself. And Netflix was even more worse for everyone outside the US. For the same price of course.
Nah, piracy never been easier: enter name of movie/series, wait a minute, watch. On all devices, rooted or not, mainstream or not.
WhatAmLemmy@lemmy.world 1 day ago
I actually probably spend more on hardware and labour pirating content than I would on multiple streaming services, but at least I don’t pad the profits of enshittified platforms, and can watch what I want when I want.
themachinestops@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 day ago
Me too. They actually made stop being lazy and make a full automated server specifically for this.
systemglitch@lemmy.world 1 day ago
I learned my lesson with Netflix, I’ll never stop doing things the better way again.
I still will never forgive Netflix for pulling a show without warning when I was actively watching it. A problem I never get doing it my way.
aesthelete@lemmy.world 1 day ago
What I find funny about this is that often the quality of the shit on the service decreases as the price continues to rise.
To see the end state, just check out trying to stream all of the NFL games of an out of market team. It’s like $1000 a year to watch mostly beer and truck ads broken up by thirty minutes of “football”.
lka1988@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 day ago
This is my default mindset now. Anytime I see a relevant “new subscription with great value!”, I just…don’t. Because I already know it won’t last, it’ll get sold or bought out, and everything good about it stripped out and scrapped.
funkajunk@lemmy.world 1 day ago
Yarrr