A new smart TV is going to be on the shelves in the US. And it will have a familiar look for veteran streaming fans. Roku, Inc. (Nasdaq: ROKU) today announced Shenzhen MTC Co. (MTC) has joined the Roku TV™ licensing program to build smart TVs under the JVC brand. MTC will leverage TV hardware reference designs and the Roku operating system (OS) to create a line of JVC smart TVs with the first HD JVC Roku TVs expected to ship in the U.S. later this year.
The Roku powered TV program has proven very popular since it launched about three years ago as numerous TV manufacturers have abandoned more clunky and out of date smart TV systems in favor of a partner who is constantly innovating and updating. Essentially it means that all the manufacturer has to worry about is the TV itself, picture quality sound etc.
“Roku is America’s #1 streaming platform because it is incredibly easy to use and offers access to countless movies and TV episodes all from the home screen,” said John Araki, Chief Technology Officer of JVC. “We are looking forward to marrying our longstanding history of innovation with Roku’s popular smart TV platform as we aim to improve our customers’ everyday life with smartly designed products making life a little more fun.”
“For more than 90 years JVC has been delivering quality video and audio products and we look forward to working with MTC to grow the JVC smart TV presence in the US,” said Chas Smith, general manager of Roku TV & Players. “We know most TV manufacturers will license a TV OS and are proud of our low-cost purpose-built solution and the level of collaboration and support that we offer our partners while delivering a superior experience to consumers.”
