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Can watch TV never be the same as millions of people ditch antennas and satellite dishes in favor of broadband TV. According to Sky, 90% of new customers now choose or a universal Sky Glass TV or Sky Stream box — both stream live TV to the screens via a Wi-Fi connection.
Rivals like Virgin Media Stream and recently relaunched by EE TV count on a decent broadband connection to bring linear channels and on-demand streamers to any room in your home.
Last month saw the launch of the long-awaited Freely, a new platform from the team behind Freeview, built from the ground up to stream live TV over broadband. The release took place a little more than five months later the name and logo were first teased by Everyone TVthe organization behind Freeview and Freesat, supported by the UK’s biggest broadcasters, including the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5.
Freely is a brand new platform that promises to stream over-the-air channels and on-demand content to your Smart TV via broadband – without an antenna or satellite dish
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As long as you have a valid TV license, Freely is completely free to watch. However, you will need to upgrade your existing Freeview Play-based equipment as this is not a simple software upgrade.
Freely will replace Freeview and Freesat in the coming years, especially with Rishi Sunak’s government cannot guarantee the future disconnection of traditional television broadcastinghow does Freely compare to its paid counterparts?
Has Everyone TV succeeded in recreating the viewing experience on Sky Glass and Sky Stream, thanks to the UK broadcaster’s custom EntertainmentOS software, for a fraction of the cost? We took a look at the list of possibilities between these two broadband platforms to find out.
Watch a live preview before switching channels
Always wanted you to be able to check if the show started on that side earlier are you changing the channels? Or find out if the commercial break is over before changing the channel?
Sky TV viewers have long been able to watch live coverage of another channel before deciding whether to switch sides. This clever feature was introduced with the Sky Q set-top box in early February 2016.
Great functionality can also be found in the latest Sky Glass and Sky Stream equipment. And for the first time, Freely will bring the same focus to the millions of viewers watching free-to-air TV in the UK.
The mini guide offers additional information about the program you’re currently watching, a shortcut to additional episodes from catch-up services, and the ability to restart from the beginning
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Loosely calls this feature Mini Guide.
Whenever you switch between live channels on a Freely-compatible set-top box or Smart TV, a pop-up window will appear at the bottom of the screen with details of what you’re currently watching, what’s next and a button to restart the current program from the beginning .
If there are multiple episodes of the same show available on demand from a catch-up service such as iPlayer, ITVX or My5, Information and episodes A button in the mini guide will allow you to start scrolling through the previous catalog and skip to the next episode.
As you navigate through other channels using the directional arrows on the remote, the show cover will be replaced with a live preview of what’s happening on the other side.
Restart the show from the beginning with one tap
Missed the start of your show? Thankfully, the days of waiting for the credits rolled around for the episode earlier you can see that the on-demand version is long gone. With Freely, you can restart the program by pressing the button on any point during the live broadcast.
While watching a linear TV channel, call up the mini guide by pressing on the remote control and you will see your progress in the program, the scheduled end time and a shortcut for Restart.
The mini-guide includes a shortcut to restart the episode from the beginning, with the program instantly restarting and streaming from the catch-up service
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Clicking this will start streaming the episode from the relevant catch-up service (BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4) so you can watch from the beginning.
This feature has been built into BBC iPlayer for some time, so it makes sense to see this great feature in Freely from the start. Sky Stream and Sky Glass viewers are also used to going back to the beginning when they tune in late to a TV show, movie or sports broadcast.
A mix of live TV and on-demand series
One of the biggest headaches that all TV platforms are trying to solve is bringing together shows, documentaries and movies from a wide range of live channels, streaming programs and digital stores into one menu.
You’ll need to know for sure when watching Freeview Play which the streaming service has the TV show you’re trying to watch in its catalog. You will then need to navigate through the menu and download the app to start viewing.
Freely is designed to remove a number of these steps.
Freely offers quick access to previously shown episodes of a show without having to launch a specific application from the main menu
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When watching an episode of the show live, a mini guide will be included Information and episodes button. A carousel of previous episodes and seasons will open, which you can view immediately. Clicking on any of these episodes will queue up the show from the corresponding streaming service.
There’s no need to know if a TV show is on BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4 or UKTV Play. Freely handles all the admin on its end and you can start browsing within seconds.
Sky Stream and Sky Glass rely on a feature known as Playlist, which brings together catalogs from all the streaming apps supported in EntertainmentOS.
Everything comes together seamlessly – even if the latest episode of a particular show is on BBC iPlayer, but earlier episodes are only available on Netflix.
You will be able to watch all the episodes in the carousel without jumping between different programs.
Freely has yet to confirm support for the likes of Netflix, Prime Video or Disney+, so the number of options available to it Information and episodes The menu won’t be the same as Sky Glass and Sky Stream, but it’s off to a very good start and will likely grow as more TV manufacturers support the software.
Freely will be the default way to watch live and on-demand TV on new smart TVs from popular brands, including Hisense and Vestel. Instead of a TV aerial, it uses an internet connection and catch-up services such as BBC iPlayer and ITVX to stream shows
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Everyone TV says the arrival of Freely marks the first time that all four UK public broadcasters have come together to launch a streaming offering and marks the start of “a journey towards securing the future of free-to-air TV through collaboration”.
Unlike Freesat, which requires a satellite dish, and Freeview, which relies on a dish to stream live channels to your TV, all you need to get started with Freely is a Wi-Fi connection. So you won’t be limited where you can put your TV in any room… as long as you have decent Wi-Fi coverage.
Freely is not a software upgrade to your existing Smart TV or Freeview-enabled set-top box. Instead, you’ll need to upgrade to one of the many new Smart TVs hitting UK retailers in the coming months.
Explore the new menu on Freely devices, which brings together live channels and on-demand shows based on your tastes. It has a special button on the TV remote
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Telly brand Hisense will be the first to deliver a Smart TV with Freely as a standard way to watch TV. These new sets will be available to order later today from Currys, Argos, AO and Very.
Rival manufacturer Vestel has confirmed plans to launch free-powered TVs in the coming weeks, with new brands likely to follow shortly.
Everyone TV has confirmed that it is in discussions with UKTV to bring its portfolio of free-to-air channels to Freely over your broadband connection. UKTV is an award-winning brand that owns and operates channels including Dave, Drama, Yesterday and W.
All of these are currently available via Freeview and Freesat, so we expect them to be included in the TV Guide and on-demand options when the first Freely TVs start hitting store shelves.
Along with participating in Freely, the BBC has has outlined plans to expand the BBC iPlayer service next year before the next license fee review by the next UK government.