Roku to Launch ‘The Buzz’ Short-Form Content Hub on Home Screen, Refreshes $30 Streaming Device

variety.com:

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Roku unveiled a software update to its streaming operating system — OS 11.5 — that among other features will introduce a new section on its streaming devices called “The Buzz,” stocked with short-form promotional content from entertainment partners.

The goal: to provide another entry point for users to discover and watch new TV shows and movies. On the hardware side, the company is launching minimal changes to its product family for the 2022 holiday shopping season, with upgraded models of the Roku Express entry-level streaming player and its wireless subwoofer (now called Roku Wireless Bass).

In addition to The Buzz, Roku OS 11.5 will add two “significant updates” to its What to Watch feature — a Continue Watching option and an expanded platform-wide Save List — along with updates to Roku Voice, expanding Bluetooth private listening to be compatible with the Roku Ultra, Roku Streambar and Roku Streambar Pro; the addition of categories to the Live TV Channel Guide and a redesigned, “more visual” Roku Store section.

The company said OS 11.5 will roll out to Roku devices “in the coming months.” “By personalizing the way our customers connect with the content they love and offering more ways to discover and access new content to stream or save for later, our users have more tools than ever to watch what they want to with ease,” said Preston Smalley, Roku’s VP of consumer product.