Fox Corp. has agreed to acquire Roku Inc. in a cash-and-stock deal valued at approximately $22 billion, including debt.
Following the transaction, existing Fox (Nasdaq: FOXA) shareholders are expected to own roughly 73 percent of the combined company, while Roku (Nasdaq: ROKU) shareholders will own about 27 percent. The companies said Roku will continue operating as an open, partner-friendly platform, with no immediate changes expected for customers. The combined company is expected to become the third-largest player in U.S. television by share of viewing.
Roku, headquartered in California, is a streaming technology company serving more than 100 million households globally through its connected TV operating system, streaming devices, advertising platform and The Roku Channel. Founded by Anthony Wood, who previously worked on streaming initiatives at Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX), Roku was spun out of Netflix and launched its first set-top streaming device in 2008.