Amazon is closing Freevee, its free ad-supported streaming television service (FAST), as it focuses more on selling ads on its Prime Video subscription service.
Amazon, which has owned IMDb since 1998, launched Freevee in 2019 as IMDb Freedive. The service allows people to watch movies and shows on demand, including Freevee originals, without subscription fees. Amazon's streaming offering was also previously known as IMDb TV and was rebranded as Amazon Freevee in 2022.
According to a report from Deadline this week, Freevee will be “phased out over the coming weeks,” but a final cutoff date has not been publicly shared.
An Amazon spokesperson explained the move to Deadline:
To provide customers with an easier viewing experience, we have decided to phase out the Freevee branding. There will be no changes to the content available to Prime members, and an extensive range of free streaming content will still be accessible to non-Prime members, including select originals from Amazon MGM Studios, a variety of licensed films and series , and a wide library of FAST channels – all available on Prime Video.
The closure also means that producers can no longer pitch shows to Freevee as Freevee originals, and that “all pending deals for such projects have been canceled,” Deadline reported.
Freevee shows are still available for free
Original Freevee shows include Jury dutywith James Marsden, Judy Justicewith Judge Judy Sheindlin, and Bosch: legacya continuation of the original Prime Video series Bosch. Freevee originals are expected to be available to watch on Prime Video after Freevee closes. People don't need a Prime Video or Prime subscription to watch these shows. At the time of writing this, I was also able to play some Freevee original movies without logging into a Prime Video or Prime account. Prime Video has also made some Prime Video originals such as The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, available under a “Freevee” section in Prime Video, where people can watch for free if they sign into an Amazon account (Prime Video or Prime subscriptions not required). Before this week's announcement, Prime Video and Freevee already shared some content.
