Roku is in talks to buy all of Quibi's content. Dreamworks Pictures co-founder Jeffrey Katzenberg and former eBay CEO Meg Whitman raised nearly $2 billion in funding before launching their short-form streaming service back in April 2020. Designed for mobile viewing, the app made up of "quick bite" content had a rough start; however, failing to generate buzz and find an audience. It was announced in October that Quibi was officially shutting down, just six months after its launch. As of December 1, the service was no longer available. Though the company's website is still up, the content is unavailable, with users given an error message when logging in. Now the short-lived app is reportedly in early talks to sell the rights to its content.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Roku is nearing a deal to buy the rights to all of Quibi's content. The deal would give Roku Channel exclusive access to Quibi's whole library of original content. The agreement's financial terms have not yet been reported, and the report indicates that the deal has not yet been reached and "could still fall apart."
Quibi originals, which consist of 10 minutes (or less) episodes, feature stars like Sophie Turner, Anna Kendrick, Zac Efron, Chance the Rapper, Kevin Hart, Liam Hemsworth, and more. Ahead of the app's shutdown, Katzenberg previously tried to get Facebook, NBCUniversal, and other companies to buy the programming rights to Quibi's content.
Roku's app, the Roku Channel, offers other companies' movies and TV shows, but the deal with Quibi would give Roku a library of exclusive content. Quibi's content may be better reached if offered on the popular streaming media devices rather than just on mobile, which was a disappointment for many users.
Source: The Wall Street Journal