Roku’s Q4 earnings are in and the weed like growth continues from last quarter. A couple of points to note:
Sales and marketing expense has accelerated the last two quarters as Roku builds up their army of sales people driving advertising sales for the platform and Roku Channel.
Players were sold for a cumulative loss this quarter. Selling the players at breakeven or a loss is possible with the added revenue growth from the platform advertising/subscription sales and the platform accounting for 100% of company profit.
The company narrative or growth plan is shifting from platform to international. Successful traction in Canada mixed with successful launches in the UK, Mexico and Brazil are Roku’s new tagline.
The overall growth figures remain strong. Total active accounts grew 36% to ~37 million. ARPU was up nearly 29% year over year and hours of streaming is still growing more than 60% year over year.
Bottom line: Cord cutting has legs and Roku remains well positioned to continue to benefit as the smart TV platform of choice.