EXCLUSIVE: The expansion charge of free, ad-supported streaming tv [FAST] is slowing within the U.S., however a brand new report has nonetheless recognized 1,943 distinctive choices.
Gavin Bridge, a longtime researcher and author targeted on FAST, stated the general tally as of this month rose 13% from Could 2023 and 47% from Could 2022. Normal leisure continues to account for the biggest share of general channels, with 1,092.
“Over the course of the final 5 years the business has seen a content material shift, the place providers who used to need to beg for video content material at the moment are within the enviable place of with the ability to decide and select which channels they function of their line-ups,” the report notes.
Plenty of main gamers in media, together with Warner Bros. Discovery, have gotten into the FAST sport in earnest not too long ago, however they don’t account for essentially the most broadly distributed channels.
Court docket TV, Forensic Information, Sport Present Central, Heartland, LOL! Community and Unsolved Mysteries tied for the widest distribution, in keeping with the report, with 13 platforms. Court docket TV is operated by Scripps; Forensic Information and Unsolved Mysteries by FilmRise; Sport Present Central by Sony Photos and LOL! Community by Hartbeat.
Motion pictures are an more and more widespread focus in FAST, with the class rising 50% year-over-year to succeed in 236. Channels with a mixture of genres are the preferred, the report stated, with Lionsgate’s MovieSphere one outstanding instance. The whole quantity of channels, which means the general quantity carried throughout all FAST platforms, jumped 74.3% in the identical interval, which the report stated was a sign that FAST platforms “view a robust providing of film channels to be necessary for customers.”
The report analyzed providers whose programming could possibly be tracked between January 2022 and Could 2024. The roster contains ABC, CW Channels, Freevee, Google TV, LG Channels, Native Now, Information by Hearth TV (nationwide channels solely), Peacock (FAST channels solely), Plex, Pluto TV, Redbox Watch Free, Samsung TV Plus, Sling Freestream, STIRR, Tubi, Vix, Vizio WatchFree+ and Xumo Play.