Palo Alto, Calif. — Digital products developer Roku, based here, said it has formed a strategic partnership with Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Tatung to co-develop future products while manufacturing Roku’s SoundBridge and Wi-Fi media modules.
Under the deal, Tatung also gains licensing rights to the SoundBridge product line for distribution of the network music players in Asia. The current, three-model SoundBridge network music player line enables consumers to listen to digital music and Internet radio anywhere in the house.
Additionally, Tatung will manufacture and sell Roku Wi-Fi Media Modules, which integrate Roku’s networked digital media features into existing products. The Wi-Fi Media Modules are based on Roku’s SoundBridge and PhotoBridge technology to allow network media streaming functions including digital music streaming, Internet radio, photo viewing and video playback.
The announcement was timed for this week’s Computex Taipei 2005 show.
The agreement enables Roku to switch its OEM supplier to Tatung, which is positioned to deliver larger quantities of goods and help drive down product cost.
Roku said it will also work with Tatung to jointly develop an array of consumer products that leverage Roku’s software, user interface and service integration expertise with Tatung’s hardware design and manufacturing abilities.
