Fox to buy streaming pioneer Roku in a $22 billion deal
[June 16, 2026] By
MICHELLE CHAPMAN
Fox Corp. has agreed to buy the streaming pioneer Roku in a
cash-and-stock deal valued at approximately $22 billion, including debt.
Roku will continue to be run as an open, partner-friendly platform, the
companies said Monday, and there appears to be no immediate changes that
customers will see. Fox and Roku said that the combined company will
become the third-largest player in U.S. television by share of viewing.
Media reports had surfaced on Friday that Roku was looking at its
strategic options, including a possible sale. Speculation was rampant as
to which companies might be interested in an acquisition. Aside from
Fox, names being tossed about as potential buyers included Netflix,
Amazon, Comcast and Disney.
The deal will give Fox access to more than 100 million global
households, along with the Roku channel and its first-party data. Fox
oversees a massive sports, news and entertainment network, as well as
Tubi, which it acquired in 2020.
Roku founder Anthony Wood had initially worked within Netflix in the
early 2000s as that company attempted to make the seismic shift from
renting DVDs, to streaming.
Roku was spun off by Netflix, however, and the company released its
first set-top box in 2008.
Wood, who is Roku's chairman and CEO, said his motivation in pursuing
the technology was his desire to record and play his favorite show,
“Star Trek.”
Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch said in a statement that combining the
businesses will bring together Fox's live news and sports content with a
streaming platform with large viewership. It will also give Fox more
exposure to advertising and streaming subscriptions.
“The combination with FOX is an extraordinary opportunity to accelerate
our vision, scale faster and innovate more aggressively for viewers,
partners and advertisers,” Wood said in prepared remarks.
Mike Proulx, research director at Forrester, said in an emailed
statement that advertising revenue is a critical component of the deal.
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This Aug. 13, 2020 file photo shows a logo for Roku on a remote
control in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, file)
 “The bigger play here is advertising
revenue, something all the major streamers are now jockeying for,"
he said. "This deal accelerates Fox into that shift with built-in
audience scale. With 2026 shaping up as a defining year of streaming
consolidation, the market shift is that streaming is no longer just
about quality content slates. It’s about controlling the full stack.
If this deal closes, Fox will control more of what viewers watch,
how they discover it, and how it gets monetized.”
Wood will have an ongoing role at the company and will join the Fox
board of directors after the transaction closes.
Murdoch said during a conference call that the combined company will
be better positioned for the next decade of video than either
company would've been alone.
“We are confident this is the right transaction, at the right
moment, for all the right reasons,” he said.
Fox will pay $96 in cash and 0.9693 shares of its Class A common
stock for each Roku Class A and Class B share outstanding. The
transaction is valued at $160 per Roku share.
Existing Fox shareholders are expected to own approximately 73% of
the combined company and Roku shareholders will own about 27%, once
the deal closes.
The deal is expected to close in the first half of next year. It
still needs approval from Fox and Roku shareholders and also
regulatory approval.
Fox's shares tumbled 15% on Monday and Roku declined nearly 2%.
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