While streaming services have been available for a while, the last couple of years has
seen incredible growth. Connected TV (CTV) and CTV platforms have taken over the
video content market, and most consumers stream their video content on at least two
or three platforms.

One of the most exciting aspects of this meteoric rise has been how streaming services
market their content. Many are subscription-based and ad-free, others have varying
service tiers, and then, of course, there’s the subject of our article today—the totally
free ad-supported streaming services. Let’s take a closer look at five that you might not
know about!

1 – Crackle

Sony’s former ad-supported streaming service, Crackle, offers a library of mainstream
titles, including some older and newer series, like “Sherlock,” starring Benedict
Cumberbatch, and some popular older shows. Films range from “First Kill” and “Dark
Tide” to “The Imitation Game” and “Battle: Los Angeles.”

The Crackle brand, now owned by Chicken Soup for the Soul, is part of Crackle Plus,
which also operates the EspanolFlix, FrightPix, and Popcornflix networks.

There are many ways to access Crackle, including Amazon Fire TV; Chromecast; Roku;
Apple TV; smart TVs from Hisense, LG, Samsung, and Vizio; gaming consoles; and
Android and iOS mobile devices.

2 – Fawesome.tv

In addition to HD quality movies and series, Fawesome.tv offers over 10,000 ad-
supported movies and series across various genres, including action, comedy, family,
health and lifestyle, horror, and thrillers. It’s owned by FutureToday, which operates
more than 1,000 streaming channels across twenty-five genres.

Every month, the site features unique selections on its “Watch List.” Below the
selections are the latest additions to new arrivals and genre categories, including action,
black cinema, thriller, western, romance, and horror.

The service is available on various TVs, computers, and mobile devices, including
Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Roku, and LG smart TVs.

3 – Amazon Freevee

Amazon Freevee was initially known as IMDb TV. Like most others on this list, it’s an ad-
supported service that offers classic TV shows, on-demand movies, and original
programs. In addition, a rotating selection of licensed content is available each month.

The channel offers popular shows like “Lost,” “Mad Men,” and “Burn Notice.” Older
shows such as “Bewitched” and “All in the Family” can also be found. Movies available
are “Knives Out,” “Deadpool,” and “Gone Girl.”

The Amazon Freevee app is available on different Amazon devices, including Fire TVs,
Android and iOS phones and tablets, and Apple TVs, as well as Chromecast, NVidia

Shield, Roku, TiVo streaming players, smart TVs from various brands, and gaming
consoles.

4 – Hoopla

Those with library cards may be able to access free movies, music, audiobooks, and
comics through Hoopla. You can start by visiting the site, creating an account, and
finding your local library.

In contrast to Kanopy, another library-based free service, Hoopla focuses primarily on
popular entertainment and education, audiobooks, comics, e-books, and music.

There are dozens of categories to choose from, such as popular mMovies like “The
Curious Case of Benjamin Button” and “Bull Durham” and cult classics like “A Fish Called
Wanda” and “Blue Velvet.”

When you join, you’ll be able to browse by title or genre. You’ll also be able to get
recommendations based on what you’ve borrowed previously and what’s popular at the
time. Checked-out movies have a 72-hour loan period.

Once you’ve selected the movie you want, it will start streaming. Your library sets the
number of movies you can borrow each month.

Hoopla is available on a computer, Apple TV, Roku, Google TV, Android devices, and iOS
and Android apps. There is also an offline viewing option in the mobile app.

5 – Haystack News

More than 400 content partners provide local, national, and global news through
Haystack News, previously known as Haystack TV. More than 90 percent of local U.S.
markets are now covered by the service, which offers more than 50 live news and
weather channels.

In a recent expansion of its partnership with Hearst Television, the company added
Hearst’s Very Local local news and information channels to its portfolio. Haystack News
offers live streams from ABC News Live, CBSN, Al Jazeera, Bloomberg, Bloomberg
Quicktake, Cheddar News, DW, Euronews, Newsmax, Newsy, and Yahoo Finance, as well
as local broadcasts from various partners.

Streaming platforms such as Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, and Apple TV, as well as smart
TVs such as Hisense, LG, TCL, Sony, Samsung, and Vizio support Haystack News. The app
can also be installed on mobile devices, Roku streaming players, TVs, and Android and
iOS mobile devices.

As streaming services become even more dominant, you can be sure that many more
service providers will be on the horizon. As the competition for your attention increases,
you can also be sure that even more free ad-supported streaming services will be
offered by new and existing content providers. This is excellent news for the viewers
and the many marketers and businesses looking to expose their brand to millions of
viewers worldwide. Happy viewing!