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Comedy Central’s Key and Peele, Daily Show, and more land on the Roku

South Park screenshot 21
Roku users have a new reason to smile — and to laugh. Comedy Central has been added to the channel store, making it now possible for the Roku faithful to stream the network’s shows. According to Variety, some content will require users to have a TV subscription, but other content will be available for free.

Among Comedy Central’s free offerings are full episodes of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore, Key & Peele, and South Park. This is especially good news for Daily Show fans hoping to soak in as much Jon Stewart as possible before he departs the show on Aug. 6. Although Comedy Central has already set up a dedicated website for those who want to stream every episode of the show, as well as added them to the Comedy Central app, the Roku channel provides yet another option.

Comedy Central has been making streaming easier overall as of late, having already launched app support for iOS, Android, Windows Phone, and Xbox One. By teaming up with Roku, it’s joining a number of TV networks that are also hosting their content on the device. Roku users can now simply add Comedy Central from the channel store, which currently includes Netflix, HBO GO, Showtime Anytime, PBS, and more.

The Comedy Central channel page assures us that “there are hours and hours of funny stuff to watch — just sign in with your TV provider to access everything.” Past episodes of stand-up specials and classic shows are included, and full episodes will be added the day after air.

Stephanie Topacio Long
Stephanie Topacio Long is a writer and editor whose writing interests range from business to books. She also contributes to…
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