The problem with watching TV nowadays is that there’s so much choice. Outside of the best streaming services, there’s a plethora of free ad-supported TV (FAST) channels to choose from as an alternative to digital TV, an area that is extremely crowded with various free live TV platforms and on-demand apps from a wide range of broadcasters. That means if you’re in the UK – and aren’t a, say, Sky TV customer – you’ve probably got several apps for catching up on your favorite programmes on BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4 and My5.
Thankfully, a new free live and on-demand TV service is about to launch that brings together all of the UK’s major live TV channels into one place. It’s called Freely and it was developed by leading broadcasters, including the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5, to amalgamate all their HD digital terrestrial television channels into one mega app that lets you browse via a TV menu as well as access on-demand playback all in one place – however, unlike Freeview, you won’t be able to rewind or fast forward.
I got a sneak peek of the new free service that blends live and on-demand TV, and from what I’ve seen so far, I’m very excited for this to launch. Freely’s home screen is as simple and straightforward as what you’d find on the best TVs and although it’s still very much in its early stages of development, I’m told by Everyone TV’s chief product officers Carl Pfeiffer and Sarah Milton that there’s a lot more exciting features set to be added as they refine the service.
How does Freely work and when can you try it
When we first heard about Freely earlier this year, it was announced that the service might launch somewhere between April and June. Speaking with Carl and Sarah during a demonstration of the platform, I was told that the plan is still to launch “imminently” but given that it will only be available to access via a TV’s interface – there’s no app as of yet – it’s likely that this now means its rollout is tied to the TV manufacturers’ schedules.
The first TVs to offer access to Freely are Hisense’s 4K 2024 TVs – however, the A4 and A5 won’t have it built-in due to them not being 4K – and Vestel’s 2024 TV range, which means that we can likely expect it when these go on sale (some of which, such as the U7N, are already available to buy in the US). I was given a demonstration of Freely on a pre-production model of the U8N, which has a dedicated button to access the service on the remote – you can also press OK to bring up a ‘quick menu’ of shortcuts.
The service is as simple to set up as a smart TV I’m told by Carl and Sarah from Everyone TV. While I didn’t see the setup process myself, they said that it would be part of the usual initial setup that you would go through on any other smart TV. After you’ve accepted the terms and conditions, you’ll then have access to the service itself. There’s no option to set up a profile, which means there isn’t a way to sign into every broadcaster’s on-demand app at once – but once you’ve signed in, you won’t have to go through the login steps again. It’s these types of features that will be explored in future iterations of the platform.
For now, Freely is a very streamlined version of a streaming platform, with only three main views: the home screen, a page for browsing on-demand content and a live TV guide. The TV guide looks similar to any other EPG that you might be familiar with – it’s essentially a TV menu filled with channels to choose from. This and the browse page is accessible via the home screen, which is similar to a lot of the smart TV menus out there, with rows of content that you can explore from each channel.
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You can further explore what to watch via the browse page, which is also filled with rows of editorially curated content grouped not just by each app but by genres, too. These genres look similar to what you’d find on the likes of Netflix, Disney Plus and Prime Video, such as action, comedies and thrillers, as well as more targeted recommendations like a ‘spotlight’ reel for editor’s picks and ‘hidden gems’ for content you may have missed hearing about.
Each row of content is individually curated by real-life people who update the recommendations on a daily and weekly basis. What I love most about this approach is the human hand in all of it. Too often we’re bombarded by bots trying to get our attention with targeted recommendations based on a watch history – rather, the watch histories of people who are seen as having similar viewing habits to us – that has even been optimized for us specifically, through cover art, for example. As you can probably imagine this won’t remain the same for long. Carl and Sarah tell me they have plans to eventually automate this via algorithms but that this would be dependent on initial feedback.
Opinion: Freely paves the way forward for more consolidation in the live and on-demand TV space
I’m probably not alone in being subscribed to more than one streaming service but the rise of FAST channels and live TV services proves that more and more people – like me – want to be able to switch on the telly and well, just be able to watch TV.
The once fun task of going down to the local blockbuster has been replaced by endless doom scrolling (instead of up and down, it’s left to right), taking out the excitement of discovering something new to watch. That’s why I think live TV is still very much here to stay.
But again, if you don’t have a service like Sky Q or Sky Glass that amalgamates all your subscriptions into one place, then you’re stuck with having to download several very different apps. I’m told there are more than 4 million people in the UK without an aerial connection so it’s only going to get better. That’s why I think services like Freely are the way forward. It has set the blueprint for future live and on-demand TV services, which is only likely to grow as digital-first ecosystems continue to consolidate.