Technology

The history of Roku and the fight over CarPlay

A deep dive into the history of the Roku Netflix Player, plus whether carmakers or Apple and Google should control car software.

Published a year ago on Aug 1st 2024, 7:00 pm

By Web Desk

The history of Roku and the fight over CarPlay

Before Roku was a leading player in the streaming wars, with that ubiquitous purple screensaver and a library of original content and practically every streaming app you could possibly imagine, it was a Netflix gadget — the first Netflix gadget, for that matter, and the one that helped start a streaming revolution. But the Roku story was almost very different.

On this episode of The Vergecast, we try out a couple of show formats we’ve been planning for a while. First, we debut our tech-rewatch segment, in the vein of some of our favorite rewatch shows like Office Ladies, The West Wing Weekly, and The Rewatchables. We’re calling it Version History, at least for now. For this first segment, we tell the story of the Roku Netflix Player, debate its legacy, and try to decide whether this thing belongs in the Version History Hall of Fame. The exact qualifications for said Hall of Fame? Still very much TBD.

After that, we have another take on our as-yet-untitled debate show. In this one, Nilay Patel and David Pierce yell at each other about who should own the screens in your car. Are CarPlay and Android Auto the answer, the solution to universally crappy automaker software? Or should Google and Apple get out of the way and let carmakers build what’s required for the self-driving, automated, infinitely more immersive future of driving? Things get heated. Names are called.

(We want to know what you think of these new formats! What do you like? What do you hate? What should we tweak or try or do differently? We’re always looking to expand The Vergecast and even launch new shows, so we want all your feedback. You can send us an email at vergecast@theverge.com, call the Hotline at 866-VERGE11, or just leave us a comment here.)

Finally, we answer a question on the Vergecast Hotline about political texts and how to get them to stop. We have good news... and we have bad news.

If you want to know more about everything we discuss in this episode, here are some links to get you started, first on the Roku Netflix Player:

From Fast Company: Inside Netflix’s Project Griffin: The Forgotten History Of Roku Under Reed HastingsFrom CNBC: How Roku used the Netflix playbook to rule streaming videoFrom CNN: Netflix Player offers PC-free movie watchingFrom Wired: Review: Roku Netflix Set Top Box Is Just Shy of Totally AmazingFrom The New York Times: Why the Roku Netflix Player Is the First Shot of the Revolution

And on the CarPlay / Android Auto debate:

Car companies haven’t figured out if they’ll let Apple CarPlay take over all the screensThe rest of the auto industry still loves CarPlay and Android AutoEverybody hates GM’s decision to kill Apple CarPlay and Android Auto for its EVsRivian CEO says CarPlay isn’t going to happenApple’s fancy new CarPlay will only work wirelessly

And on robotexts:

From The Washington Post: How to stop receiving spam textsFrom PCMag: Stop Robotexts: How to Block Smishing and Spam Text Messages