Roku flips switch, enables Amazon on Demand

I love the little Roku Netflix box, which apparently needs to be called by its rightful name, the Roku Digital Video Player, because it does Amazon on Demand now as well: ROKU NOW OFFERS ACCESS TO AMAZON VIDEO ON DEMAND Digital Video Player Instantly Connects Consumers To Over 40,000 New Titles Roku, Inc., maker of the popular Roku digital video player, today announced that customers can now watch movies and TV shows from Amazon Video On Demand. With Amazon Video On Demand, Roku customers can for the first time purchase or rent new release movies the same day they are released on DVD and watch commercial-free TV shows the day after they air– all from Amazon’s extensive selection of more than 40,000 movie and TV titles. ”We are excited to give our customers access to Amazon's massive catalogue of top movies and TV shows – including many new releases”, said Anthony Wood, Roku CEO and Founder.  “The launch of Amazon Video On Demand on Roku demonstrates our commitment to creating an open platform that instantly delivers the entertainment consumers want directly to their TVs.” The compact Roku player connects directly to any TV and uses a broadband Internet connection to deliver DVD-quality video instantly.  Roku customers can now choose from Amazon’s enormous selection without paying subscription fees, waiting for downloads, or running out to the video store. “The $99 Roku player provides our customers with tremendous value and a compelling entertainment experience,” said Roy Price, director of Amazon Video On Demand. “Consumers are looking for inexpensive and hassle-free ways to watch their favorite movies and TV shows, and the Roku player meets that need head-on.” How It Works: - Connect the Roku player to your TV and your broadband Internet connection (Wi-Fi is built in for ease of set-up) - Browse Amazon Video On Demand’s extensive selection right on your TV - Rent or purchase and instantly watch any of more than 40,000 choices,

Paul Thurrott

March 3, 2009

2 Min Read
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I love the little Roku Netflix box, which apparently needs to be called by its rightful name, the Roku Digital Video Player, because it does Amazon on Demand now as well:

ROKU NOW OFFERS ACCESS TO AMAZON VIDEO ON DEMAND
Digital Video Player Instantly Connects Consumers To Over 40,000 New Titles

Roku, Inc., maker of the popular Roku digital video player, today announced that customers can now watch movies and TV shows from Amazon Video On Demand. With Amazon Video On Demand, Roku customers can for the first time purchase or rent new release movies the same day they are released on DVD and watch commercial-free TV shows the day after they air– all from Amazon’s extensive selection of more than 40,000 movie and TV titles.

”We are excited to give our customers access to Amazon's massive catalogue of top movies and TV shows – including many new releases”, said Anthony Wood, Roku CEO and Founder.  “The launch of Amazon Video On Demand on Roku demonstrates our commitment to creating an open platform that instantly delivers the entertainment consumers want directly to their TVs.”

The compact Roku player connects directly to any TV and uses a broadband Internet connection to deliver DVD-quality video instantly.  Roku customers can now choose from Amazon’s enormous selection without paying subscription fees, waiting for downloads, or running out to the video store.

“The $99 Roku player provides our customers with tremendous value and a compelling entertainment experience,” said Roy Price, director of Amazon Video On Demand. “Consumers are looking for inexpensive and hassle-free ways to watch their favorite movies and TV shows, and the Roku player meets that need head-on.”

How It Works:
- Connect the Roku player to your TV and your broadband Internet connection (Wi-Fi is built in for ease of set-up)
- Browse Amazon Video On Demand’s extensive selection right on your TV
- Rent or purchase and instantly watch any of more than 40,000 choices, including top new releases and the latest TV shows

Over the course of the next week, current Roku customers will receive a free and automatic software update giving them access to the Amazon Video on Demand service.  All Roku player customers will continue to have access to Netflix Instant Watching with unlimited access to more than 12,000 movies and TV episodes for a low monthly fee.

The Roku digital video player is available for purchase exclusively at Roku.com and Amazon.com.

Good stuff. Will test this week if I can find a spare moment.

Related: Oddly, if you visit the Roku Web site now, it's all about this player. It's other products have been depreciated quite a bit on the site.

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About the Author(s)

Paul Thurrott

Paul Thurrott is senior technical analyst for Windows IT Pro. He writes the SuperSite for Windows, a weekly editorial for Windows IT Pro UPDATE, and a daily Windows news and information newsletter called WinInfo Daily UPDATE.

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