Roku expands its territory

Roku, the little box that was known for quite a  while as “that Netflix streaming device,” is broadening its lineup.

To be fair, the unit also streamed Amazon Video on demand and material from MLB.com, but it has now more than quadrupled the services it offers. Channels for Blip.tv, Facebook Photos, Flickr, FrameChannel, Mediafly, MobileTribe, Motionbox, Pandora, Revision3 Internet TV and TwiT,tv are coming on board.

Users will be able to choose which additional channels they want via an ‘app’ store similar to the one on your smart phone. The company says there will be a steady stream of new channels between now and the Consumer Electronics Show in January.

Roku has been assaulted on all sides as other consumer electronics devices – such as the Xbox 360, many new Blu-Ray players and Internet-enabled TVs - have enabled people to stream online video into their living room. So far, though, neither Roky now the competitors have managed to lure Hulu to their side. The first to do that will likely see a significant sales spike.