Amazon will shut down Freevee, months after saying it wouldn’t shut down Freevee

Ben Schoon | Nov 13 2024 - 7:45 am PT

Amazon has confirmed it will shut down its ad-supported streaming service, Freevee, and fold the content into Prime Video.

As first reported by Deadline, Amazon will be pulling the plug on Freevee “over the coming weeks.” Amazon points to Prime Video as the new home for this free content, with viewers still able to access the ad-supported content without an Amazon Prime membership.

In a statement, Amazon explains that this move delivers a “simpler viewing experience for customers.”

We have built Prime Video into a first-stop entertainment destination where customers can personalize their viewing experience by streaming exclusive Prime member entertainment produced by Amazon MGM Studios, licensed movies and series, content from other services as an add-on subscription, live sports, blockbuster movies and series to rent or buy, FAST Channels and the complete Amazon Freevee content offering. To deliver a simpler viewing experience for customers, we have decided to phase out Freevee branding. There will be no change to the content available for Prime members, and a vast offering of free streaming content will still be accessible for non-Prime members, including select Originals from Amazon MGM Studios, a variety of licensed movies and series, and a broad library of FAST Channels – all available on Prime Video.

Freevee first launched in 2022.

The announcement comes months after it was reported that Amazon would do exactly this – shut down Freevee and fold it into Prime Video. At the time, Amazon directly pushed back at the report, saying that there were “no changes” coming to Freevee and that it was an “important streaming offering.” That report came just after Prime Video implemented an added $2.99/month charge to remove ads, which were newly added to the service early this year.

Free and ad-supported TV (FAST) content continues to grow in popularity, with many apps and streaming services offering a catalog of free streaming channels. Google TV, notably, has a library of over 150 channels available, while it offers easy access to over 1,100 channels with its partners through the homescreen. One of the primary ways that Freevee differed from many other FAST providers was that it focused mainly on on-demand content rather than “channels.”