Streaming services might be the next big thing in entertainment, but that doesn’t mean that all streaming services are going to be successful. Quibi learnt that lesson last year when despite releasing during a time when people had to stay at home and not go to their local cinemas, it wasn’t able to find an audience with its “bite-sized” content offering that was supposed to allow people to watch content in shorter mobile stints – more in fitting with their busy lives.
In truth though, it wasn’t an offering that was ever likely to gain much traction given that most people prefer to consume their scripted entertainment content in more traditional formats. That doesn’t mean though that there wasn’t some good stuff that got made with the support of other studios and so Quibi is looking to try and regain some of its massive losses by selling off its content to other services.
And according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal, Roku are now the favourites to acquire the rights to Quibi’s entire slate of programming. If you’re not aware, Roku is primarily known as producers of digital media hardware used for streaming services. While the tech company’s first-generation set-top box was developed as a collaboration with Netflix back in 2008, Roku has never developed any content of its own, so this is new ground for the company.
The report doesn’t reveal any amounts or detail around the sale, but Facebook and NBCUniversal had reportedly already declined on picking up Quibi content. Given how the shows had yet to build up any reputations, despite Quibi boss Jeffrey Katzenberg roping in top Hollywood talent, it’s unlikely the streaming service would be able to attract a large price for it.
Considering some people had invested large amounts of money into Quibi content, I do hope they can find a new home and hopefully popularity, but I do think that with the streaming market only getting more fragmented and competitive that we will see a lot more closures and amalgamations coming in the future.
Last Updated: January 5, 2021
