Roku Latest To Cancel Live NewFront Presentation

Roku jumped in Thursday to cancel its live presentation to advertisers, following Twitter and YouTube earlier in the week.

These companies are part of the NewFronts, which are organized by the IAB. The organization recommended yesterday that presentations all migrate to virtual only and is coming up with a suite of streaming solutions and tools to make it easier. Most digital presenters are likely to follow the IAB’s recommendation.

“Roku has made the decision to move away from a live, in-person event and instead will produce a streaming-only presentation for NewFronts. As we enter the streaming decade, we think we can achieve strong results through a digital presentation and look forward to presenting to the industry. More details will be shared in the coming weeks,” the company said.

“We are closely monitoring information about Coronavirus/COVID-19 and have implemented preventative measures for our employees and everyone in the Roku community based on CDC recommendations,” it added.

The IAB stated Wednesday that, “With uncertainty over the COVID-19 virus growing, we at IAB are introducing new tools and channels to enable the digital marketing and media industry to interact and transact during the annual Digital Content NewFronts marketplace, which is currently scheduled for April 27 – May 6.”

It said it “strongly recommend streaming-only productions for all presenters.” And it took an upbeat approach. “By adding a streaming option to the NewFronts, we’ll transform the NewFronts and Upfronts into the 21st Century media and brand marketplace they were meant to be – a benefit that will last long after COVID-19 is relegated to the history books,” IAB said.