What changed
Fox completed its about $22B Roku acquisition; Roku now sits in a new FOX Digital Platforms unit with Tubi
When
Closed Friday, November 6, 2026; agreed June 15, 2026
Who it affects
Brands buying connected TV ads on Roku, including through Amazon DSP (now DVA+)
What to do
Map your Roku spend, set a CPM ceiling and judge CTV on sales outcomes

Key takeaways

  • Fox closed its about $22B Roku deal on November 6, 2026, months early, and put Roku next to Tubi in a new digital unit.
  • The DOJ commitments protect content partners for at least three years; the coverage we read mentions none covering ad partnerships like Amazon DSP's 80 million household Roku deal.
  • Roku sold 33% more video impressions at 7% lower average prices last quarter, so buy on outcomes and cap CPMs.

Fox and Roku, 2025 to 2026

  1. Amazon DSP gets about 80M US Roku homes

  2. Fox agrees to buy Roku for about $22B

  3. DOJ sends a Second Request

  4. Shareholders of both companies approve

  5. Deal closes; DOJ cites content commitments

What closed on November 6

Fox said the deal closed on November 6 and that Roku shares stop trading on Nasdaq. According to PPC Land, each Roku share converts into $95.30 in cash plus 0.9799 of a FOX Class A share. The June terms were $96.00 plus 0.9693 of a share, which Fox valued at $160 a Roku share, or about $22 billion of enterprise value. Existing FOX holders own about 74% of the combined company and former Roku holders about 26%. Fox expects about $400 million of run rate cost savings within two years.

Roku moves into a new division, FOX Digital Platforms, alongside the free streaming service Tubi, the FOX One subscription service and Red Seat Ventures. Roku founder Anthony Wood joins the Fox board and co-chairs the division with Paul Cheesbrough, who is also its chief executive. TheDesk reports that Mustafa Ozgen stays on as Roku CEO, while Tubi chief Anjali Sud and Roku media president Charlie Collier are leaving.

What Fox promised the Justice Department

The Justice Department sent both companies a Second Request on September 8, a sign of a deeper review. On November 6 its Antitrust Division said the deal was not likely to harm competition, according to Deadline's report of the statement. The department reasoned that Roku depends on content from many providers, so the merged company would lose money and reputation if it used Roku against Fox's rivals, and viewers could switch to other TV platforms.

  • Carry non-Fox content on Roku for at least three years
  • Do not discriminate against non-Fox content in Roku search results
  • Let users rearrange apps on the home screen
  • Keep offering data products to third parties on commercially reasonable terms
  • Keep existing data firewalls on competitively sensitive non-Fox content data, including click, search, view and voice data, for at least three years

The part brands should read twice

Every reported commitment protects content partners and viewers. None of the commitments described in the coverage we read mentions advertising partnerships, such as the June 2025 deal that gave Amazon DSP advertisers authenticated access to about 80 million US Roku households, which the two companies called the largest such connected TV partnership. Nothing announced so far says that deal will change. But it now sits inside a company whose Tubi service sells the same kind of ad supported viewing as Prime Video, and the three year window on the content commitments is a reminder that promises like these have end dates.

The ad numbers explain why Fox wanted Roku. In the quarter to September 30, Roku's advertising revenue rose 23% to $727.4 million as video ad impressions grew 33% while the average price per impression fell 7%, per PPC Land's reading of the shareholder letter. More than 80% of Roku's in-stream video impressions were bought programmatically, and its Google Display & Video 360 integration is set to expand. FOX's own advertising revenue rose 47% to $2.08 billion in the same three months, helped by the World Cup and political spending.

What the commitments cover

CoveredNot mentioned
ContentNon-Fox apps kept 3 yearsWhat happens after three years
SearchNo self preferenceAd placement rules
DataContent data firewallsAd partner data deals
AdsNothing specificAmazon DSP partnership

So what: cheaper impressions, more owner risk

Roku is selling far more impressions at slightly lower prices, which is good for buyers in the short run. The risk is concentration: one owner now controls a large TV home screen, its own streaming apps and the ad sales around them. If you buy Roku inventory through Amazon, you depend on two companies that compete in streaming ads keeping a partnership both currently say they value.

For example, using illustrative numbers: a brand spends $20,000 a month on connected TV at a $25 CPM, which buys 800,000 impressions. A 7% lower CPM, the change Roku reported in its average price per impression, would make that $23.25 and buy about 860,000 impressions for the same money, roughly 60,000 more. If instead 60% of that spend ran on Roku through one partnership and the terms changed, $12,000 a month of reach would need a new home in the middle of a season. Cheaper impressions only help if they turn into detail page views and new to brand orders.

What sellers and brands should do

These steps apply to brands running streaming TV through Amazon DSP or direct Roku buys. If you are still deciding between channels, our guide to Amazon DSP vs Sponsored Ads covers when TV ads make sense.

  • Media buyer: in your Amazon DSP (DVA+) reports, split streaming TV spend by supply source so you know how much runs on Roku versus Prime Video and others. Metric: Roku share of CTV spend.
  • Media buyer: set a CPM ceiling per line item and review it monthly, since Roku's average price per impression is falling. Metric: effective CPM against your ceiling.
  • Brand manager: judge CTV on outcomes, not reach. Compare detail page views per 1,000 impressions and new to brand purchases before cutting or scaling. Metric: new to brand orders per $1,000 spent.
  • Brand manager: watch branded search in Brand Analytics during TV flights; that is the cleanest sign TV is working. Metric: branded search query volume week over week.
  • Finance lead: log renewal dates and change of control terms on any direct Roku or Tubi deals. Metric: every contract reviewed before 2027 planning.
  • Media buyer: keep at least one second route to the same households, such as Prime Video ads, so no single partnership holds your whole TV plan. Metric: no single supply source above 60% of CTV spend.

CTV checks before the holiday peak

  • Split CTV spend by supply source
  • Set a CPM ceiling per line item
  • Track new to brand orders per $1,000
  • Watch branded search during flights
  • Log renewal dates on direct deals
  • Keep a second route to the same homes

When this does not apply

If you only run Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brands, nothing in your account changes because of this deal. The ad partnership risk described here is a scenario to plan for, not a reported change. The quarterly numbers above are from the two companies' own reports as summarised by trade press, and the DOJ commitments are as reported by Deadline; the full terms have not been published in the coverage we read.

Where PPC Spider helps

We follow every retail media shift on our retail media news channel, including the recent change to how Amazon counts display impressions. SpiderOS tracks spend, budgets and outcomes daily, and we set targets from product margin after fees. To see whether your TV and display spend is earning its keep, book a free Amazon audit.

Sources

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