Roku UK Channel Store - Weekly RoundUp #147

Hi, everyone !!



First of all, I'd like to wish you a "Happy New Year" and to say "thank you" for continuing to read all of my Roku-related ramblings, here on this blog, as well as following the day-to-day news published via the companion Twitter Feed: @ukrokuchannels - it's much appreciated! ;-)


Again, due to the recent festivities, there has been very little action in terms of new channel additions over the past seven days... so little in fact that, when you factor in the removal of the 'Rdio' channel from Roku devices worldwide, we actually have one less app in the "Official" Roku UK Channel Store than we did at this time last week! For those that haven't already figured it out... what that (effectively) means is that there were ZERO NEW CHANNEL ADDITIONS since my last 'Weekly RoundUp'! :-(


So, with no 'Roku Guide' reviews and/or links to channel descriptions from the Roku website to provide for you, I've decided (instead) to dedicate this post as more of an "Annual RoundUp" for what has been going on in terms of UK Roku-related happenings over the past twelve months. What follows is a month-by-month summary of the main news stories (specific or relevant to UK Roku users) which were published via the "Official" Roku Blog throughout 2015. After that, I shall add my own thoughts as to the "highs" and "lows" of the year as well as mentioning a few things for Roku users to look forward to over the coming weeks and months as 2016 gets underway. Anyway, here goes...



JANUARY HIGHLIGHTS:

• "SPORTS ILLUSTRATED" channel added.....................................READ MORE
• "WWE NETWORK" channel added.................................................READ MORE

FEBRUARY HIGHLIGHTS:

• NEW FASTER "YOUTUBE" USER INTERFACE.......................READ MORE
• "BLOOMBERG TV+" channel added..............................................READ MORE

MARCH HIGHLIGHTS:

• "CINEMANOW" channel added.......................................................READ MORE
• "RED BULL TV" channel added......................................................READ MORE
• "SXSW ON" channel added...............................................................READ MORE
• ROKU DEEMED MARKET LEADER by Frost & Sullivan...........READ MORE

APRIL HIGHLIGHTS:

• ROKU 2 [Model: 4205EU] ANNOUNCED....................................READ MORE
• ROKU "SEARCH" and "MY FEED" ANNOUNCED..................READ MORE
• REDDIT AMA with ROKU CEO, Anthony Wood.........................READ MORE
• "GOPRO" channel added..................................................................READ MORE

MAY HIGHLIGHTS:

• "TWITCH" channel added................................................................READ MORE
• NATIONAL STREAMING DAY (20th May)................................READ MORE
• ROKU 2 [Model: 4205EU] RELEASED.........................................READ MORE
• ROKU "SEARCH" and "MY FEED" RELEASED........................READ MORE
• ROKU "THEMES" CATEGORY ADDED....................................READ MORE

JUNE HIGHLIGHTS:

• GETTING STARTED WITH "MY FEED"....................................READ MORE

JULY HIGHLIGHTS:

• N/A

AUGUST HIGHLIGHTS:

• NEW UPDATED "PLEX" USER INTERFACE............................READ MORE

SEPTEMBER HIGHLIGHTS:

• N/A

OCTOBER HIGHLIGHTS:

• ROKU OS 7 INTRODUCED..........................................................READ MORE
• NEW ROKU APP INTRODUCED for Mobile Devices.................READ MORE

NOVEMBER HIGHLIGHTS:

• "AMAZON VIDEO" channel added (AT LAST!)..........................READ MORE
• "YOUNG HOLLYWOOD" channel added.....................................READ MORE

DECEMBER HIGHLIGHTS:

• HOTEL & DORM CONNECT INTRODUCED............................READ MORE
• "DEEZER" channel added................................................................READ MORE

OTHER NON-UK HIGHLIGHTS OF 2015:

• NEW ROKU TV's & 4K DESIGN ANNOUNCED for USA........READ MORE
• ROKU TV's RECOMMENDED by NETFLIX..............................READ MORE
• ROKU & NIELSEN "TV RATINGS" PARTNERSHIP................READ MORE
• ROKU-POWERED SKY ONLINE TV BOX for Italy...................READ MORE
• TELSTRA CHOOSE ROKU for Telstra TV in Australia................READ MORE
• ROKU PLAYER LAUNCHES IN MEXICO.................................READ MORE
• ROKU 4 INTRODUCED for USA ONLY.....................................READ MORE
• ROKU PLAYER LAUNCHES IN FRANCE................................READ MORE
• LTD EDITION ROKU SE ANNOUNCED for USA ONLY........READ MORE

PLEASE NOTE:- That, where I have highlighted certain apps "channel added", these were channels which Roku posted about via their "official" blog and there were many other notable apps released during 2015 which are equally as good as, if not better than, those singled-out by Roku for a special mention. You need only look back through the various 'Weekly RoundUp' posts via my Blog Archive for this year (and previous years) using the links in the upper right-hand column to see for yourself. In fact, A GRAND TOTAL OF 849 CHANNELS WERE ADDED DURING 2015 to the selection available via the "Official" Roku UK Channel Store. This incredible statistic is something for which Roku developers everywhere should be applauded - AVERAGING 16+ NEW APPS PER WEEK - and that is FOR EVERY WEEK OF THE YEAR and, bearing in mind it wasn't so long ago that Roku were quoting an average of "one channel per day", this clearly demonstrates that (collectively) Roku developers have doubled their efforts - ADDING MORE THAN 2 NEW APPS EVERY DAY - and, for that, we really must say - A HUGE THANK YOU TO ALL ROKU DEVELOPERS - for their continued efforts in bringing new content to Roku devices everywhere on a daily basis and bringing the overall total number of apps in the "Official" Roku UKChannel Store to 2,233 as of this moment! :-)

MEANWHILE... if you wish to see what Roku CEO, Anthony Wood, said about the achievements of the company during the past twelve months, you can read all about it - VIA THIS POST - on the "Official" Roku Blog. In truth... there was not much of relevance to UK Roku users in the article, which is (partly) why I decided to compile this "2015: the year in review" post in a more UK-specific format. However, reading the "official" post from the Roku CEO is recommended... if only by way of comparison to what has been written here, as it gives a pretty good indication of how much the UK has been overlooked by the company (i.e. Roku, themselves, and NOT the developers) during 2015. To sum up the glaring omissions, while adding further food for thought, here are...

THE LOWS AND WOES OF UK ROKU USERS IN 2015:

• NO ROKU 3 (with "Voice Search" remote) [Model: 4230] for UK buyers
• NO ROKU 4 [Model: 4400] for UK buyers
• NO LIMITED EDITION ROKU SE for UK buyers
• STILL NO SIGN OF ROKU TV for UK buyers
• FAILURE TO EXTEND SOME "FEATURED" THEMES to UK throughout the year
• FAILURE TO EXTEND FREE "Game of Thrones" THEME to UK
• FAILURE TO EXTEND FREE "House of Cards" THEME to UK
• FAILURE TO EXTEND FREE "Star Wars" THEME to UK
• FAILURE TO ADD "Popcornflix" TO UK ROKU SEARCH - as promised back in May '15
• FAILURE TO ADD "CinemaNow" TO UK ROKU SEARCH - already on U.S. devices
• FAILURE TO ADD "Met Opera On Demand" TO UK ROKU SEARCH - already in U.S.
• FAILURE TO SECURE "SKY GO" for the Roku platform in the UK
• FAILURE TO SECURE "BT SPORT" and/or "BT TV" for the Roku platform in the UK
• FAILURE TO SECURE "CURZON HOME CINEMA" for the Roku platform in the UK
• FAILURE TO SECURE "PICTUREBOX FILMS" for the Roku platform in the UK
• FAILURE TO SECURE "WUAKI TV" for the Roku platform in the UK
• FAILURE TO SECURE "BFI PLAYER" for the Roku platform in the UK
• FAILURE TO SECURE "TV PLAYER" for the Roku platform in the UK
• FAILURE TO SECURE "UKTV PLAYER" for the Roku platform in the UK
• FAILURE TO SECURE "BLINKBOX" for the Roku platform in the UK
• FAILURE TO SECURE "DOGWOOF" for the Roku platform in the UK
• FAILURE TO SECURE "WE ARE COLONY" for the Roku platform in the UK
• FAILURE TO SECURE "MUBI" for the Roku platform in UK & other regions
• AND SO ON AND SO FORTH...

If you can think of any more channels you'd like to see added to Roku devices in the UK, or spot any further omissions from the above list(s), then please feel free to leave a comment below! ;-)

ON A BRIGHTER NOTE... some things to look forward to for UK Roku users, as well as those in other Roku regions are an "Highspots TV" channel (for wrestling fans) which has already been developed by the folks at Pivotshare and is (currently) waiting for "approval" by Roku for entry into the Roku Channel Store that features on Roku devices, PLUS; an (as yet) un-named new music channel (for 'Classic Rock' fans) from Phil Autelitano and the gang at Mediarazzi, AND; some (apparently) very special announcements from Roku at (or around) the Consumer Electronics Show (aka CES) due to take place from Wednesday 6th January to Saturday 9th January 2016... so you can expect to hear more about that (in the first instance) via the companion Twitter Feed: @ukrokuchannels as well as in my next 'Weekly RoundUp' post which will be published via this blog roughly one week from now!

Until the next time, then...

That's all folks !!