
Richard Halton, UK MD, Roku, tells TVBEurope why every year feels like a revolution in the broadcast industry
By Contributor
Published: December 18, 2024 Updated: December 19, 2024
Richard Halton, UK MD, Roku, tells TVBEurope why every year feels like a revolution in the broadcast industry
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin> Richard Halton, UK MD, Roku, tells TVBEurope why every year feels like a revolution in the broadcast industry
https://www.tvbeurope.com/business/people/meet-the-uk-managing-director title=Share via Email class=share-email>
Talk us through an average day in your role There's no typical day, but with a focus on working with partners, it's not unusual to start with a breakfast meeting (ideally in West London!) and if I don't have an early meeting, I'll submit to my training schedule and head out for a run or row before work.
Richard Halton, UK MD, Roku We have a great team and once in the office we'll catch up on the latest goings on in the industry, and if it's early in the week, last week's sales data. The most important meeting brings together the UK leadership group, always at 9:59am Tuesday (I was once told 10am is the most productive hour of any day so start early I say ) or later in the day once a month to involve colleagues in the US. Roku's operation in the UK is a complete snapshot of the business, including engineering and ads team with global responsibility, so it's a good pulse check for the organisation. We might hear from one of the team about the quarterly business review they had with ITV or Channel 4, a second about new Players and Roku TV deals that we've got coming up with retailers, and another about upcoming enhancements to our user interface.
Lunch is normally on the hoof and from 1pm teams in New York are online and the buzz in the office grows, with another step up at 4pm once our HQ in the West Coast wakes up. My boss is based in California and he's happy to start the day in the car as he passes Pismo beach on the way to San Jose.
Part of my role is to keep Roku plugged into what's happening in the industry. This might mean that we're going to an RTS planning meeting for their next convention, or recently meeting with the new team at the Department of Media, Culture and Sport to discuss how Roku can be a positive force in UK broadcasting. Calls continue late into the evening, so I'll try and get home for those, then brace for the inbound email which arrives while I'm sleeping.
How did you get started in the media industry? I spent most of my university career imagining working in journalism; I was editing the newspaper at Warwick University and studying English Literature. After graduating I started work in retail for Andersen Consulting and loved learning about business, but soon realised I really wanted to work in the media industry. I applied for a job at the BBC and for a journalism course at City University and got accepted for both on the same day. I chose the BBC because it took me straight into participating in media and I was gripped from day one. I joined just as the digital TV revolution was kicking off, at this curious crossroads of the new and old world as pay TV took off and digital broadcast launched in the UK. I was hooked by the creative and commissioning side of television, channel planning and later the future of delivery and distribution.
One of my very first projects was trying to find the successor to the 1996 Pride and Prejudice series. The BBC had commissioned author David Lodge to write a treatment of every single major English novel and I was asked to add an opinion on which book could be the next big series. At the same time I was working with NTL on near video on demand' (where I met Gidon Katz, now a colleague at Roku) and I think that was a defining period half of my brain was in a Victorian novel and the other in the future of TV distribution.
What training did you have before entering the industry? The media industry is fascinating because it exercises those two parts of your brain. One is the editorial and content part, and the other is strategy focused. At university I trained the creative and editorial side and then my time in consulting trained the strategy side. Retail consulting also gave me a fantastic view of, and knowledge of, audience trends, the opportunity of big data to improve the customer experience and how that could and should direct innovation and investment into digital media and entertainment.
Now I have the opportunity to help others kick start their careers too, as I sit on the advisory board for the RTS's Mini MBA Program. It's a brilliant multidisciplinary introduction to the industry that will help to create the generation of leaders and innovators.
Why do you enjoy working in the industry? Since I started at the BBC, every year feels like a revolution with constant change and innovation in TV. That feeling has stayed for the last twenty-five years. I've been able to witness and take part in huge restructuring, from the traditional four or five channels many of us grew up with, through to YouView, Freeview and the growth of the EPG as we transitioned to digital TV. Now we're into the next phase with a focus on streaming, content, and collaboration. Figuring out what kind of business model can be successful at each of those points and how partnerships help drive better outcomes has been fascinating.
Working in the UK is so rewarding as we have this long, deep history of British broadcasting innovation in content and technology and it remains a privilege to be part of that conversation. Working for a US tech company, having led YouView and working in the ads business at Origin gives a totally new perspective.
What piece of advice would you offer someone look
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
06/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/08/2026
At this year's SET EXPO, PlayBox Neo will present recent innovations across its PlayBox Neo Suite and integrated range of broadcast media solutions. By show...
06/08/2026
Live demo at IBC2026 VisualOn Booth, Hall 5, Stand A55
Amsterdam, Netherlands Modern Streaming Solutions Private Limited, a rising force in India's dig...
06/08/2026
Screen Australia and YouTube Australia fund five new teams through eleventh Skip...
06/08/2026
How Karukera Studio Built a Media Production Hub with SNS EVO
Melanie Ciotti August 5, 2026
0 Comments
Hero images displays Karukera Studio in Sainte-...
06/08/2026
NHK drama series Rosanjin no Kamado shot on PYXIS 6K
Brie Clayton August 5, 2026
0 Comments
Blackmagic PYXIS 6K and DaVinci Resolve Studio capture the...
06/08/2026
Camera Match: AutoSetup 3d Plugin / script for Photomontages- Cinema 4D
Jamie Cardoso August 5, 2026
0 Comments
If you do any kind of Architectural Vi...
05/08/2026
Thomson's Climate Crisis Toolkit for Media in Tanzania is being included in a new virtual library designed to ensure accurate and engaging storytelling arou...
05/08/2026
RSNs, teams, leagues, and streamers explore the present and future of local spor...
05/08/2026
As sports-production workflows generate larger volumes of unstructured data and ...
05/08/2026
Three aspiring broadcasters will contribute on-camera and inside the production ...
05/08/2026
Adam Meeks attends the premiere of his film Union County, an official selection of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. (Photo by Jemal Countess/Sundance Institut...
05/08/2026
Major discounts, updates & remakes of early VST plug-ins
Steinberg are currently celebrating two significant anniversaries, with this week marking the 30th ...
05/08/2026
Flagship monitor range gains wireless remote control
KRK's flagship studio monitor range has just been upgraded, with three new fifth-generation models ...
05/08/2026
Rohde & Schwarz launches next phase of Airways New Zealand Air Traffic Control s...
05/08/2026
Rohde & Schwarz presents the R&S MP007, a man-portable tactical direction findin...
05/08/2026
Advertisers invested $53.6 million in the retirement sector in the last 12 month...
05/08/2026
Nielsen CMI and Ad Intel data reveals who's visiting IKEA, where else they s...
05/08/2026
Media buyers and sellers can now compare deduplicated campaign reach across computer, mobile, connected TV and linear TV across all measurable CTV publishers in...
05/08/2026
Stranger Things' Leads All Streaming Titles with 23.3 Billion Minutes in Fir...
05/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
05/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
05/08/2026
QuickLink, the leading provider of award-winning video production and remote guest integration solutions, announces the appointment of Kane Peterson to its Nort...
05/08/2026
XR research reveals marketers believe they have control over production costs, yet budget overruns, campaign delays and creative cutbacks remain commonplace
Se...
05/08/2026
Game On Live Studio Uses Blackmagic Design to Stream Tropical 7s
Brie Clayton August 4, 2026
0 Comments
Every match of world's largest youth rugby...
05/08/2026
Chris Fitzgerald to Head TDC's Experiential Growth
Brie Clayton August 4, 2026
0 Comments
Technical Direction Company promotes Chris Fitzgerald to...
05/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
05/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
05/08/2026
Profuz Digital is set to launch a powerful upgrade to its Profuz LAPIS digital media management platform at IBC this year at Stand 8.A88. France Galop, Canal+ F...
05/08/2026
KRK, a Gibson brand and leader in professional studio monitoring for nearly four decades, launches its new V Series Five Studio Monitors, the latest evolution o...
05/08/2026
Network expansion, continued customer growth and stable financial performance characterized Magyar Telekoms business results for the first half and second quart...
05/08/2026
Wednesday 5 August 2026
The Sky Foundation launches new bursary programme to su...
05/08/2026
Charlie Sheen Launches Mostly Sheenius in Partnership with Red Seat Ventures After Decades as One of the World's Most Recognizable and Interviewed Celebr...
04/08/2026
Live production in the cloud is a growing trend across the industry, and Major L...
04/08/2026
LAFC co-managing owner will succeed Don Garber on Jan. 1, 2027, as league prepar...
04/08/2026
In 2022, when the PGA TOUR was breaking ground on its new, state-of-the-art broa...
04/08/2026
Provided by POVORA, the new camera angle offers a dealer's-eye view of the c...
04/08/2026
Spiideo will provide the camera setup, with NEP handling broadcast integration and off-site video operations...
04/08/2026
Production team streamed more than 750 youth rugby matches using ATEM switchers,...
04/08/2026
Agreement gives KTC early access to NDI's Advanced SDK for integration across commercial displays, digital signage, and interactive panels...
04/08/2026
Twelve projects across four categories recognize collaborative work in productio...
04/08/2026
Multi-year agreement will introduce SkeleTRACK, semi-automated offside, automate...