Streaming 101- FREE Choices Galore
To pay, or not to pay, that is the question. Apologies to Shakespeare, but this seems to be the question on everyone’s mind when it comes to streaming. So many options, so little budget.
Today we will discuss the differences between free streaming platforms and paid platforms. They are both out there and they’re both good. It all depends on your tolerance for advertisements during your programs.
In order to navigate these waters, let us break down three types of streaming platforms.
- SVOD (Subscription Video on Demand): NETFLIX, Disney+, Max (formerly known as HBO Max), Paramount+ are some of the SVOD options. You pay a monthly fee and get to stream a program on demand when you want to see it.
- AVOD (Advertising Video on Demand): These are lower priced tiers of the platforms above that are lower priced because of the ads.
- FAST (Free Ad Supported Television): Examples include Pluto TV, Tubi, Xumo etc. These are free. Yes, FREE platforms loaded with video content and they are FAST-ly growing rapidly in popularity.
Let’s start with the free stuff. No, not the free stuff Oprah does but free, streaming video.
Where to begin? In no particular preference other than by the amount of active monthly users each platform has, here are some popular platforms to check out.
Pluto TV
- With around 80 million active monthly users, Pluto TV offers “Everything from movies to full seasons of your favorite shows. 100s of channels. Zeros of dollars. Stream now. Pay never.”
- Pluto TV is owned by Paramount, the same owners of CBS / Viacom so they have a tremendous library of content from their wide berth of networks.
Tubi TV
- Tubi TV has around 65 million active monthly users and “offers the ability to watch amazing movies and TV shows for free. No subscription fees, and no credit cards. Just thousands of hours of streaming video content.”
- Tubi TV is owned and operated by FOX corporation
Xumo Play
- Xumo has over 40 million active monthly users on its platform and “are set to lead the future of streaming through devices, content collection, and a simple user experience.”
- Xumo offers more than 250 channels across dozens of genres, including movies, news, sports and more.
- Xumo is a joint venture between Comcast Corp and Charter Communications.
That my friends, is the tip of the streaming iceberg. The above streaming platforms are just three of the most popular FREE streaming platforms with thousands of hours of programming content. Oh, and in case you weren’t sure from the first few mentions, they are all absolutely FREE.
In addition to the above platforms, here are some more that are worth your time for which to take a look. Again, in no particular order, other than being alphabetical.
- Crackle
- Freevee
- Haystack News
- Plex
- Roku Channel
- Sling Freestream
- Stirr
- Vudu
I could go on, but there are only 1,440 minutes in the day. Until next time, happy streaming!
Now a word from our sponsor HTC.
