Video Streaming Stick

DAILY DOT COM - Roku is thinking outside its set-top box in an attempt to bring more internet video to flat-panel televisions.  

Approximately 2.5 million people use Roku. The streaming media box brings Netflix, Amazon and other Internet channels to your living room and bedroom big screen TVs.  

Wednesday, the electronics company unveiled a finger-sized device that won't require extra cords or separate remote controls to stream video over high-speed internet connections.

The Roku Steaming Stick plugs directly into a high-definition port, just as a flash drive fits into a computer's USB outlet.

The streaming stick won't be available until the second half of this year and will be sold at Best Buy for $50 to $100.

Roku's announcement comes ahead of the official unveiling next week at the annual electronics show in Las Vegas.

Incidentally, Netflix said its members watched more than two billion hours of TV shows and movies through its streaming service during the fourth quarter.  

The company has been trying to increase its focus on building its streaming content offerings.

In July, Netflix outraged many of its subscribers by essentially raising rates by 60 percent for those using its combination DVD-and-streaming video plan.

It then said it would split its traditional DVD and streaming businesses and rename the DVD-by-mail side Qwikster, but scrapped the plan a few weeks later.

Netflix was established in 1997 as a DVD-by-mail business. It now has about 20 million streaming members worldwide.

For more information on the 2012 International Consumers Electronics Show, visit their website .

See a list of Roku's products here .