Freeview Play on demand library tops 30,000 hours

On the eve of the Disney+ Star roll-out, Freeview Play has announced that it now offers more than 30,000 hours of on-demand TV. The impressive milestone translates to around 3.5 years worth of boxset binging.

The service is home to live and on-demand content from BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, All 4, My5, UKTV Play, CBS Catchup Channels UK, Horror Bites, STV Player, POP Player and BBC Sounds,

Freeview is the UK’s biggest TV platform, watched in over 17 million homes. Launched in 2015, Freeview Play has sold over 13 million devices, and has over 9 million regular users, making it the fastest growing TV platform in the UK.

Its on-demand content offering has increased by more than half in just two years.

In 2019, Freeview launched its mobile app, giving viewers access to the country’s most popular programmes all in one place, on the go.

The Freeview platform is managed by Digital UK and DTV Services. The companies have four common shareholders (the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Arqiva), with Sky a shareholder in DTV Services.

Pointing to recent subscription increases by SVoD leader Netflix, the service points out that the only rise its viewers will ever see will be the hours of content available to enjoy.

To aid navigation and content discovery, Freeview Play offers universal search functionality alongside a carousel of handpicked recommendations.

In related news, the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 have announced plans to integrate Digital UK, the joint venture which provides Freeview TV services, with Freesat, which offers access to the UK’s subscription-free satellite television service.

The integration will help ensure viewers continue to have access to a range of free-to-view TV services in the UK as well as benefit from technological innovations and developments across the two services.

“We welcome this opportunity to work more closely with Freesat whilst continuing to deliver our mission of ensuring everyone in the UK can access a high quality TV service for free,” says Jonathan Thompson, CEO, Digital UK.

The integration is conditional on receipt of merger control and regulatory approvals, and, subject to those approvals, is expected to close in a few months.