The data was gathered from 1,600 Roku devices directly connected to the Internet, according to Variety. Shodan’s founder, John Matherly, posted a ranking of the top 10 Roku apps on Reddit, admitting that the sample number was relatively small, but “still enough to be interesting.” He also included a link to the complete rankings, which did indeed prove to be intriguing.
Both HBO Now and Showtime’s standalone video service earned spots in the top 10, placing sixth and seventh, respectively. The premium networks’ so-called TV Everywhere services, on the other hand, HBO Go and Showtime Anytime, fell far below at spots 17 and 44, respectively. No authenticated video on-demand service was able to crack the top 10.
Of course, it isn’t shocking that TV Everywhere services would be less popular for download on Roku. By virtue, the users usually have cable subscriptions, so they may prefer to watch content live or time-shift via DVR rather than stream from a dedicated set-top box. Additionally, as Variety points out, the Shodan numbers don’t indicate how often an app is used, only that it has been installed. Plus, the data may be skewed by the fact that there are certain apps that come pre-installed on Roku devices.
Nonetheless, the fact that these standalone apps have topped their authenticated streaming counterparts and cracked the top 10 is notable, especially given that HBO Now was only added to Roku in October 2015. The data serves as another example of the growth of cord-cutting. Like Matherly said, the data is interesting, even if more exact numbers are needed to draw definite conclusions.
The complete list of the top 10 apps on Roku, according to Shodan’s data, appears below.
- Netflix
- Roku Home News
- Amazon Video
- Movie Store and TV Store
- Hulu
- HBO Now
- Showtime
- VUDU
- Pandora
- YouTube
