Freeview successor Freely is coming to Amazon Fire TVs in landmark new deal, but there’s a catch
Freely — the all-new platform that brings many Sky Glass-like features to free-to-air channels — will make its debut on Fire TV-powered televisions this autumn, following a landmark deal between Amazon and the UK’s major broadcasters, including the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, and Channel 5.
Although not a direct replacement for Freeview, Freely has been created by the same team and is fast becoming the default way to watch live telly on new Smart TVs with manufacturers like Hisense, Bush, Panasonic, Toshiba, Sharp, and Metz already onboard. And now, Amazon will leverage the platform, which lets you stream live television channels and restart any show with the touch of a button, on its popular TVs.
Amazon cuts price of its 4K Fire TVs by £200
If you’re looking to upgrade to a Fire TV-powered Smart TV from Amazon with 4K Ultra HD resolution and support for Dolby Digital Plus, look no further than the 4-Series. For a limited time, Amazon has cut £200 off the price of this telly, which will be eligible to get Freely in the coming weeks as part of the blockbuster new partnership with BBC, ITV, Channel 4, and Channel 5
The service will be integrated into the Fire TV interface, offering quick access to live channels and on-demand content from the UK broadcasters. Freely — designed from the ground-up by Everyone TV — recently reached a milestone, topping Netflix for the number of shows and films available to watch with nothing more than a Wi-Fi connection, forgoing the aerial needed on Freeview, and satellite dish required to watch via Freesat.
With the new deal, Freely is set to become the main TV Guide on select Fire TV Smart TVs.
Speaking about the partnership struck with US shopping giant Amazon, Everyone TV CEO Jonathan Thompson said: “It’s exciting to see the momentum behind Freely building so rapidly as we announce this breakthrough deal with Amazon Fire TV. A deal of this kind, between a technology giant and those working in the public interest, is remarkable. It represents a significant development in widening the availability of Freely and therefore ensuring UK audiences can access free TV well into the future.”
Freely will be coming as part of an update to the Fire TV operating system, which powers Smart TVs and Fire TV Stick dongles designed by Amazon. Everyone TV and Amazon have confirmed the models that will unlock Freely in the coming weeks are:
Fire TV Omni QLED SeriesFire TV 2-SeriesAll (2024) 4K Smart TVs from TCL, including 43PF650K, 50PF650K, 55PF650K and 65PF650KPanasonic Smart TVs with Fire OS, including OLED models
Prices for these Fire TV-powered televisions vary, with the Amazon Fire TV 2-Series being the cheapest option. These start from £249.99 for the 32-inch model, and can be even more affordable in site-wide sales, like the Prime Big Deal Days.
Panasonic’s inclusion means viewers can experience Freely on high-end OLED TVs for the first time.
However, it’s important to note that Freely will only be available on new Fire TV-powered televisions and not on the popular Fire TV Stick devices, which plug directly into the HDMI port on the back of your television and have been subject to a crackdown by UK police.
“Everyone TV is delighted to be working with such an important global player in the TV market through a deal that allows us to bring Freely to Amazon Fire TVs,” Everyone TV CEO Jonathan Thompson added. “I am pleased Amazon sees the immense value that easy access to public service broadcaster and other free-to-view content brings to UK audiences. This is the beginning of a journey, bringing invaluable content to UK audiences and uniting what was an increasingly fragmented viewing experience.”
This newly-struck partnership marks a significant step in expanding the availability of Freely, which hopes to future-proof live television in the age of streaming. Using Wi-Fi or ethernet, live channels will be beamed to your Smart TV — meaning you can place the set anywhere in your home, not limited to where the aerial feeds into the world.
Freely was launched in April 2024 by Everyone TV. It’s designed to be a broadband-based successor to traditional free-to-air services, like Freeview and Freesat. It offers a single platform for both live and on-demand content, designed to work without an aerial or satellite dish — although you will see fewer channels than Freeview unless you connect an aerial.
The service provides a TV guide that combines over-the-air channels with online content from major UK broadcasters, allowing viewers to browse shows from BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4, My5, and STV Player in one place. Freely is adding new hardware partners and broadcasters to the platform all of the time, to bring the service to parity — and beyond — with Freeview and Freesat.
In recent weeks, the newest British telly platform added UKTV’s channels to its lineup, including Dave, Drama, Yesterday, and W. This boosted Freely’s on-demand library to 70,000 hours of content, surpassing major streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, and Apple TV+ in the UK.
According to research from Everyone TV, Freely now offers 96% of the nation’s favourite shows, including popular titles like The Traitors, I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here!, Strictly Come Dancing, and The Great British Bake Off.
Despite its expansion, Freely faces ongoing challenges. The service is not available on existing Fire TV devices, including the popular Fire TV Sticks, limiting its accessibility to those purchasing new television sets.
If you own a Smart TV with Freeview or Freeview Play buit-in, you won’t see an upgrade to Freely coming anytime soon. Instead, the new platform is only available to those who upgrade to a newer model from Hisense, Bush, Panasonic, Toshiba, Sharp, Metz, and now, Fire TV-powered sets from Amazon, Panasonic, and TLC.
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Discussing the new development, Director of Fire TV in Europe at Amazon, Emma Gilmartin said: “We’re thrilled to be bringing Freely to Fire TV customers in the UK. This new deal for Freely allows us to provide even more value to our customers by giving them easy access to the best free TV shows, films and live channels from UK broadcasters, alongside the great content they already enjoy on Fire TV.”
Freely TVs are available in stores across the UK and online at retailers such as Currys, Argos, AO, Very and John Lewis. You’ll need to have a Licence Fee to be able to watch live and on-demand content from UK broadcasters.