Exclusive live sports are coming to Roku, as the streaming platform enters the competitive world of sports broadcasting. Roku has partnered with CBS Sports to become the exclusive U.S. media partners for Formula E, the motorsport series featuring electric racing cars.
This deal expands CBS’ existing partnership with Formula E, with CBS broadcasting five races per season and streaming them on Paramount+. Roku, on the other hand, will stream 11 races per season on the Roku Channel. Both the Paramount+ and Roku Channel races will be accessible through Roku’s sports experience, which aims to showcase live sports content to Roku users.
According to David Eilenberg, Roku’s head of content, this deal marks a significant step for Roku into the world of live sports rights. Roku has been focused on developing sports-adjacent programming like docuseries and “The Rich Eisen Show.” Eilenberg states that this partnership with Formula E allows Roku to have its own offering in the sports domain.
The agreement between Roku and Formula E makes the races available for free through the Roku Channel. Combined with the races broadcast on CBS and streamed on Paramount+, this partnership ensures broad accessibility to Formula E for the U.S. audience.
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Formula E CEO Jeff Dodds describes both Roku and Formula E as challenger businesses, making the partnership a natural fit. The success of Formula E’s recent race in Portland, Oregon, solidified the organization’s desire to expand its media presence in the U.S. Dodds emphasizes the importance of finding the right media partnership to showcase the competitiveness of electric vehicles and believes that the combination of CBS and Roku accomplishes that goal.
Formula E believes that the combination of CBS and Paramount+ audience, along with the Roku audience, will provide the reach and exposure it needs. The electric generation, which is more interested in sustainability, aligns with Roku’s demographic as well.
For Roku, this deal marks its first foray into live sports. It provides a glimpse into the future of sports broadcasting and the potential placement of sports events behind paywalls. Roku’s offering of Formula E races for free on the Roku Channel underscores the platform’s commitment to providing free, ad-supported streaming.
As the sports landscape evolves, Eilenberg suggests that sports leagues will look for a balance between free, paywall, and pay-per-view offerings. The economic modeling of sports broadcasting will be an interesting factor to observe. However, Roku’s completely free, ad-supported streaming service through the Roku Channel positions it as a unique offering in the sports streaming market.
In conclusion, Roku’s partnership with CBS Sports to become the exclusive U.S. media partners for Formula E marks a significant step for the streaming platform in the live sports domain. The combination of CBS, Paramount+, and Roku aims to provide Formula E with the reach and exposure it seeks while showcasing competitive electric vehicle racing to a broader audience.
