Roku closed 2020 with more than 50 million active users, according to the company’s preliminary fourth quarter data. After adding plenty of new active users in 2020, Roku described the 50 million mark as a “significant milestone” for the company.
The rise to 50 million is not something that’s happened overnight. For example, Roku ended 2019 with 36.9 million active accounts. However, the number of users is only one of the metrics that matters for Roku, with how many hours streamed just as important. In 2019, Roku registered 40.3 billion streaming hours, up 16.3 billion hours from the year before.
Based on Roku’s estimated fourth quarter data, the company had 51.2 million active accounts as of the close of December 31, 2020. This represented an increase of 14 million accounts during the year. Besides the increase in active accounts, Roku also saw a healthy increase in hours streamed. According to Roku, the fourth quarter resulted in an estimated 17 billion streaming hours, taking the overall 2020 total to 58.7 billion hours.
These are estimated figures with Roku confirming that it will release final fourth quarter and annual results in February.
Roku continues growing
Like many people, Roku had a turbulent 2020. Although there were no issues in terms of account and streaming hour growth, the company did encounter some backlash over content. This was mostly due to the lack of an agreement to carry Peacock and HBO Max. With no access to two new and popular streaming services, Roku had been under pressure to find a way to agree a deal.
Peacock was the first to be resolved with the support for Roku players and devices going live in September. However, it wasn’t until December when HBO Max support finally arrived.
While a significant milestone for the company, Roku passing 50 million active accounts is less important than the growth pattern the company has experienced over the years. With 14 million added active users in 2020 alone, it is clear that Roku is continuing to expand at a rapid rate. Something that looks likely to continue in 2021 as more consumers look for ways to cut the cord, especially with no more major app support issues hanging over its head.
Of course, Roku is not the only cord-cutting option with Amazon’s Fire TV platform also proving to be an equally popular solution. Generally speaking, Roku and Fire TV have been expanding at a similar rate and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon. Amazon hit the 50 million user milestone back in December.
Source: Roku
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