How to launch and monetize FAST channels on Roku
The streaming wars have shifted into a new phase. As subscription fatigue hits consumers and acquisition costs skyrocket, free ad-supported television (FAST) channels are emerging as the next big opportunity. When you combine FAST with Roku's massive reach and sophisticated targeting capabilities, you can unlock powerful new ways to monetize your existing content.
The question isn't whether you should launch Roku programming—it's how quickly you can get started. With the right strategies, you can not only learn how to start a Roku channel, but how to increase reach, engagement, and revenue.
Why launch a FAST channel on Roku?
The biggest reason to make your own Roku channel is the platform’s growth: In 2024, The Roku Channel, Roku's free ad-supported streamer, surpassed Tubi in usage, with nearly 2% of total TV viewership in the U.S. Better yet, Roku offers plenty of ways to reach all those viewers, with advanced targeted advertising and technological infrastructure that supports everything from live sports to on-demand content.
FAST channels in particular let you monetize content you already own in new ways, turning your archives into revenue-generating assets without the complexity of subscription management. That’s why FAST channels launching on Roku are on the rise, especially live sports content.
FAST channels vs. traditional streaming models
Understanding the various streaming models is an important piece of how to start a Roku channel. FAST channels operate on an advertising-supported model instead of charging monthly subscription fees. This approach removes barriers to viewership while creating opportunities for highly targeted, premium advertising.
With subscription video on demand (SVOD) services, viewers pay a monthly fee for ad-free access to content libraries. For most big players, FAST doesn’t replace SVOD entirely—the two strategies complement each other. Together, they give you multiple ways to monetize content across different platforms and audiences.
How much does it cost to create a Roku channel?
Creating a Roku channel typically costs $10,000 and up, depending on your specific needs and approach. Why the big range? Development costs vary based on whether you choose a simple template-based solution or build a fully custom Roku channel with advanced features.
Hosting and bandwidth considerations also impact your budget, especially as your audience grows and you stream more content. Plus, FAST channels often need additional investment in content management and ad insertion technology to maximize revenue potential.
How to start a Roku channel: Step-by-step
Roku channel development follows a series of steps that set the foundation for long-term success. Here’s how to make informed decisions at each stage.
1. Determine your content
Your content strategy determines everything else about your channel, from technical requirements to revenue potential. Sports and other live events drive some of the highest engagement rates on FAST platforms, while news creates appointment viewing that keeps audiences coming back regularly.
On the other hand, pre-recorded content like movies and TV shows provides consistent programming that makes it easy to fill your schedule. With LTN, you don’t have to choose: We’re the industry's only solution that can power digital linear channels with both live and pre-recorded content, giving you complete flexibility.
2. Choose between SDK and Direct Publisher
There are two main paths if you want to learn how to make a Roku app: Roku Direct Publisher and the Roku SDK (software development kit). Direct Publisher has a simpler setup process but limits your content to playing only on The Roku Channel. If you go with the SDK, you'll need more technical expertise and development time, but you get complete control over your channel's look, feel, and functionality.
For large enterprises and content rights holders, the SDK typically makes more sense because it allows you to distribute across multiple platforms. With this approach, you can reach viewers on Roku, iOS, Android, Apple TV, and other OTT platforms from a single codebase. You can also create custom Roku channels. This flexibility becomes important as you scale your strategy.
3. Ingest and format your content
Roku requirements for content include using certain formats as well as inserting metadata. Your videos need to be formatted in compatible formats like DASH, HLS, or standard file types like M4V, MOV, and MP4. You'll also need to ingest this content into a website, content delivery network, or online video platform that can serve it reliably to viewers.
Creating your content feed involves adding metadata according to Roku's requirements, including titles (which have character limits), descriptions, categories, and other information that helps viewers discover your programming. This metadata helps viewers understand what they're watching and when new content will be available.
4. Submit your channel
Once you create a Roku app, you can preview how it will look and function on actual devices using the Developer Dashboard. Once you're satisfied with the experience, submit your channel for review by Roku's certification team, which checks for technical compliance and content guidelines.
After approval, you can publish your channel to the Roku Channel Store, making it available to millions of potential viewers. At this point, your focus shifts from technical setup to audience acquisition and retention. You'll want to have your marketing and content promotion strategies ready to go as soon as your channel goes live.
5. Test and optimize
Your work doesn't stop once you simply know how to start a Roku channel—ongoing testing and optimization drive long-term success. Monitor playout quality, video performance, and ad delivery across different devices to identify and fix issues before they impact viewer experience. An ultra-low-latency network like LTN is essential to prevent buffering and delays that can cause viewers to drop.
You'll also want to test different content schedules and ad strategies, using viewer data and engagement metrics to refine your approach. Ongoing optimization helps you understand what content performs best, when your audience is most active, and how to structure your programming for maximum engagement and revenue growth.
Best practices for monetizing FAST channels on Roku
Starting a Roku channel is just the beginning. Of course, you also want to know how to make money with a Roku channel. That comes from implementing smart monetization strategies that maximize ad revenue while keeping viewers coming back for more.
Leverage dynamic ad insertion
Dynamic ad insertion technology allows you to deliver personalized, non-skippable ads that match each viewer's interests and demographics. Roku's targeting capabilities let you segment audiences by age, gender, income level, ZIP code, interests, and viewing behavior. This level of targeting goes far beyond what traditional linear TV can offer, making your ad inventory more valuable to advertisers.
LTN's dynamic ad insertion technology integrates seamlessly with Roku's platform, giving you frame-accurate ad placement and real-time optimization that maximizes fill rates and revenue per viewer. You can also test different ad formats and frequencies to find the sweet spot that drives revenue without hurting viewer experience.
Automate playout
If you’re managing tens—or hundreds—of custom Roku channels, content management can become a bottleneck. As you scale your operations, you need automation tools. Automated systems can ingest content, add metadata, insert ads, and manage playout without constant human intervention. That means not only lower operational costs, but also better consistency and reliability.
LTN can automate the entire channel creation process, from content acquisition to ad insertion and playout—and not just for Roku programming. We can handle multiple channels and platforms, including mobile apps, YouTube, and SVOD and OTT services. You’ll have end-to-end visibility into all your channels and always-on support, so you can resolve issues before they affect viewers.
Experiment with formats
The streaming landscape is always changing. Successful organizations need to experiment with channel concepts and playout strategies to respond to trending topics, capitalize on live events, and reach new audiences. The good news is that once you know how to start a Roku channel, you can use that knowledge to launch, test, and iterate much faster.
It’s even easier to experiment with formats when you have the right partner. LTN's intuitive, zero-hardware design and automated workflows let you iterate on new FAST channels without increasing headcount or technical complexity—and then efficiently scale the ones that work.
Why LTN is your ideal FAST channel partner
Roku channel development is a big opportunity for rights owners and distributors who want to monetize their content. The combination of Roku's reach and targeting capabilities with FAST's advertising-supported model creates new revenue streams that complement your existing strategy. Learning how to start a Roku channel is the first step, but success at scale depends on having the right technology to handle content ingestion, ad insertion, playout automation, and multi-platform distribution.
LTN is the industry’s most comprehensive, single-source channel creation solution—and the only one built exclusively for live news and sports. We handle every aspect of FAST channel creation—so you can focus on creating great content. Book a demo today to see how LTN can help you launch and monetize FAST channels on Roku and beyond.