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How to Make Money on Roku: The Only Guide You Need

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For video companies and entrepreneurs alike, Roku represents a huge business opportunity. Nearly ⅓ of all US connected TV users are on Roku, and that number is projected to keep on rising. The question for many businesses remains: What’s the best way to monetize a channel and audience on Roku’s TV streaming platform?

There are enough tools in the OTT space to make your head spin. So as a team that’s helped build profitable Roku apps for companies like Wired and FastCompany, we put together this guide to Roku monetization.

Let’s start with the basics. What are the major ways you can make money with Roku? There are two broad categories:

Ad-Based (AVOD) vs. Subscription-Based (SVOD).

Ad-based Video on Demand (AVOD) are channels that sell ads to make money. This is the most traditional TV route, with everything from cable TV to YouTube having ads before, in-between or after content. These ads can take many shapes, from typical pre or mid-roll ads to sponsored content, banner images, infomercials, direct sponsorships, etc.

Subscription Video on Demand (SVOD) are channels that charge users a monthly or annual fee to access content. Think Netflix, Hulu, and other major “cord-cutting” services. This is a more recent development in video but has already become wildly popular, especially among businesses with high-quality content and loyal audiences.

Going Subscription-Based.

Many video businesses, magazines, newspapers and blogs are instituting paywalls over ads. Subscriptions allow you to make exponentially more money per viewer, so you can build a strong business model with a smaller, more concentrated audience. But to succeed as a subscription-based business, you’ll first need to build a loyal fanbase. With so much free content in the world, viewers are hesitant to pay for content they don’t need. 

Going Ad-Based.

Generally speaking, selling ads is a more accessible route. There are plenty of instant-monetization tools that can help channels of any size start running ads and making money. But most of these tools come with a price.

If you’re a US-based channel that published using Roku’s Direct Publisher tool, you can opt in to their Roku Audience Network to start making money. This lets Roku sell and run ads on your behalf, no development or work needed from you. The tradeoff, however, is that Roku takes 40% of revenue earned. There’s an alternative, keep reading 🙂

Upgrading your channel and monetizing with Rokufy:

Rokufy is a tool that converts your channel to a professional custom SDK channel, while keeping your user-base. At no additional cost to you, we can upgrade your Roku channel into a professional monetized app in a few business days. By providing the viewer with an upgraded experience, Rokufy increases your viewership. As a result, you can earn additional revenue as there is increased traffic, while continuing to make the same content as you did before. Considering that we have industry-leading demand partners, Rokufy allows you to maximize your earnings.

Furthermore, Rokufy comes with a professional dashboard that makes it easy to manage your channel. You can customize your app for your content and view your revenue in real-time using Rokufy. Considering that Rokufy is free, it is absolutely a risk-free way to boost your channel’s revenue and make more money on Roku.

Feel free to reach out to us at rokufy.com , 

Upgrade your channel and break the limits of your content!

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