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'''[[Wikipedia:Roku, Inc.|Roku, Inc.]]''' is an American technology company, founded in October of 2002, known for their "[[Roku]]" line of products which consist of Smart TVs & streaming players.
{{InfoboxProductLine
=== Post-purchase EULA modification ===
| Title = Roku, Inc.
In early March 2024, Roku Inc. [[post-purchase EULA modification|modified]] their [[End-User License Agreement]] (EULA), after the company disclosed a data breach that affected over 15,000 accounts.
| Release Year = 2002
| Product Type = Hardware
| In Production = Yes
| Official Website = https://roku.com/
| Logo = Roku.png
}}'''Roku, Inc.''' is an American technology company, founded in October of 2002, known for their "Roku" line of products which consist of Smart TVs & streaming players. It is also the creator and maintainer of "Roku OS." Roku OS is a smart TV operating system allowing users to access apps such as streaming services, which was released in 2004.


This new EULA was enforced onto pre-existing users in the form of a message on their Smart TV/streaming player, which only allowed the user to accept the new terms, and not offer an option to decline. The only option Roku Inc. offered to opt-out of the new EULA was for the user to mail the company their contact information and email used to register the Roku account (if applicable), along with the product model, software, or service "at issue."
==Consumer-protection summary==


====Privacy<ref name=":0">https://docs.roku.com/published/userprivacypolicy/en/us</ref>====


In this new EULA, Roku included a [[forced arbitration]] agreement to not allow users to sue, or to take part in lawsuits against Roku Inc.
*Roku collects personal information such as the user's device information, usage data, viewing activity, and location data.
*This data is used for purposes such as providing and improving services, personalizing content, and targeted advertisements.
*Roku retains personal data for as long as deemed necessary.
*On many of their devices and services such as Roku OS, "Do not sell my personal information" is opt-out rather than opt-in.


====Transparency====


Roku claimed a week later that the new EULA was not in relation to the aforementioned data breach.
*The "Do not sell my personal information" setting on Roku OS is hidden behind many menus.
== References ==
*Roku states the added forced arbitration clause was a decision made separate of the data breach (More on this below). This has obviously led to skepticism on the companies' overall truthfulness.<ref name=":1">https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/over-15-000-hacked-roku-accounts-sold-for-50-each-to-buy-hardware/</ref>
[https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/over-15-000-hacked-roku-accounts-sold-for-50-each-to-buy-hardware/ Over 15,000 hacked Roku accounts sold for 50¢ each to buy hardware] [https://web.archive.org/web/20240402093803/https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/over-15-000-hacked-roku-accounts-sold-for-50-each-to-buy-hardware/ <nowiki>[Archived]</nowiki>]


[https://www.claimdepot.com/data-breach/roku Roku Data Breach: Over 15,000 Accounts Affected]
==Consumer-protection incidents==


[https://gizmodo.com/roku-smart-tv-streaming-arbitration-agreement-class-act-1851314150 Roku Will Bork Your TV Unless You Promise Not to Sue]  [https://web.archive.org/web/20240307005654/https://gizmodo.com/roku-smart-tv-streaming-arbitration-agreement-class-act-1851314150 <nowiki>[Archived]</nowiki>]
===Post-Purchase EULA Modification (Mar. 2024)===
[[File:Roku Forced Arbitration.jpg|thumb|510x510px|The screen in which consumers agreed to force arbitration. There is no "disagree."<ref name=":2">https://www.techhive.com/article/2258136/rokus-forced-arbitration-update-leaves-users-fuming.html</ref>]]
In early March 2024, Roku Inc. [[Post-purchase EULA modification|modified]] its [[End-User License Agreement|end-user license agreement]] (EULA), after the company disclosed a data breach that affected 15,000 accounts.<ref name=":2" /> In April 2024, Roku disclosed another incident that affected 576,000 additional accounts.<ref name=":1" />


[https://techcrunch.com/2024/03/05/roku-disables-tvs-and-streaming-devices-until-users-consent-to-forced-arbitration/ Roku disables TVs and streaming devices until users consent to new terms]
This new EULA was enforced onto pre-existing users in the form of a message on their Smart TV/streaming player, which only allowed the user to accept the new terms, and did not offer an option to decline. The only option Roku Inc. offered to opt-out of the new EULA was for the user to mail the company their contact information and email used to register the Roku account (if applicable), along with the product model, software, or service "at issue." In this new EULA, Roku included a [[forced arbitration]] agreement to not allow users to sue, or to take part in lawsuits against Roku Inc.<ref name=":0" /> Roku claimed a week later that the new EULA was not in relation to the aforementioned data breach.


[[Category:Companies]]
==="HDMI-customized ad insertion" patent (Oct. 2023)===
[[Category:Online Services Companies]]
In early October 2023, Roku filed a patent ([https://patents.google.com/patent/US20230388589A1/en US20230388589A1]) for a program to insert ads on top of the display output of any non-Roku device displayed on a Roku TV. This program would be able to detect when the consumer has paused a video feed and display an advertisement, personalized by data collected through Roku services.<ref>https://patents.google.com/patent/US20230388589A1/en</ref>
[[Category:Consumer Products Companies]]
 
As of January 2025, this patent has not been implemented into any Roku devices.
 
==References==
<references />
 
[[Category:Electronics companies]]

Latest revision as of 12:32, 23 January 2025

Roku, Inc.
Basic Information
Release Year 2002
Product Type Hardware
In Production Yes
Official Website https://roku.com/

Roku, Inc. is an American technology company, founded in October of 2002, known for their "Roku" line of products which consist of Smart TVs & streaming players. It is also the creator and maintainer of "Roku OS." Roku OS is a smart TV operating system allowing users to access apps such as streaming services, which was released in 2004.

Consumer-protection summary[edit | edit source]

Privacy[1][edit | edit source]

  • Roku collects personal information such as the user's device information, usage data, viewing activity, and location data.
  • This data is used for purposes such as providing and improving services, personalizing content, and targeted advertisements.
  • Roku retains personal data for as long as deemed necessary.
  • On many of their devices and services such as Roku OS, "Do not sell my personal information" is opt-out rather than opt-in.

Transparency[edit | edit source]

  • The "Do not sell my personal information" setting on Roku OS is hidden behind many menus.
  • Roku states the added forced arbitration clause was a decision made separate of the data breach (More on this below). This has obviously led to skepticism on the companies' overall truthfulness.[2]

Consumer-protection incidents[edit | edit source]

Post-Purchase EULA Modification (Mar. 2024)[edit | edit source]

The screen in which consumers agreed to force arbitration. There is no "disagree."[3]

In early March 2024, Roku Inc. modified its end-user license agreement (EULA), after the company disclosed a data breach that affected 15,000 accounts.[3] In April 2024, Roku disclosed another incident that affected 576,000 additional accounts.[2]

This new EULA was enforced onto pre-existing users in the form of a message on their Smart TV/streaming player, which only allowed the user to accept the new terms, and did not offer an option to decline. The only option Roku Inc. offered to opt-out of the new EULA was for the user to mail the company their contact information and email used to register the Roku account (if applicable), along with the product model, software, or service "at issue." In this new EULA, Roku included a forced arbitration agreement to not allow users to sue, or to take part in lawsuits against Roku Inc.[1] Roku claimed a week later that the new EULA was not in relation to the aforementioned data breach.

"HDMI-customized ad insertion" patent (Oct. 2023)[edit | edit source]

In early October 2023, Roku filed a patent (US20230388589A1) for a program to insert ads on top of the display output of any non-Roku device displayed on a Roku TV. This program would be able to detect when the consumer has paused a video feed and display an advertisement, personalized by data collected through Roku services.[4]

As of January 2025, this patent has not been implemented into any Roku devices.

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://docs.roku.com/published/userprivacypolicy/en/us
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/over-15-000-hacked-roku-accounts-sold-for-50-each-to-buy-hardware/
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 https://www.techhive.com/article/2258136/rokus-forced-arbitration-update-leaves-users-fuming.html
  4. ↑ https://patents.google.com/patent/US20230388589A1/en
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