Free Ad-supported Television (FAST) has been growing in popularity, providing straightforward alternative to the often overwhelming amount of choice offered through on demand services. Inherently similar of traditional linear TV channel, FAST channels provide a lean-back experience to viewers to watch wherever and whenever they want.
While many of the core principles of the FAST value proposition are in contrast to the SVOD model, we are now seeing new channel strategies designed to align these different services.
As FAST services have evolved both Paramount+ and NBC Universal’s Peacock have launched exclusive promotional channels on Vizio’s FAST service WatchFree+. Vizio, an Original Electronics Manufacturer (OEM) owned by Walmart, is a major supplier of Connected TVs (CTV) in the market and has it’s own stand-alone FAST platform, available for free to all Vizio TV customers. They join many other OEMs doing the same, such as Samsung, LG, Roku, and TiVo, who all have a unique position controlling CTV UIs, an important initial access point for a large segment of the market. As these OEM FAST platforms have grown in influence, SVOD apps like Paramount+ and Peacock have identified them as potential promotional tools, providing a free entry point for consumers into their paid platforms.
Last year, Paramount, which already owns the Pluto TV FAST service, launched a Paramount+ channel on Vizio. This move aimed to promote Paramount’s flagship SVOD service. The pop-up channel offered free access to some of Paramount’s most popular series, including Tulsa, Dexter, Frasier, and their new high-budget action drama, Special Ops: Lioness, starring Zoe Saldaña, Nicole Kidman, and Morgan Freeman. Additionally, the channel was integrated into Vizio’s EPG with enhanced interactive features, allowing viewers to conveniently link directly to the Paramount+ sign-up page from the channel.
Peacock adopted a similar strategy, promoting its premium subscription service on Vizio with it’s own Peacock Preview channel. The channel offered popular series like Bel-Air, Below Deck, The Real Housewives, The Traitors, and Vanderpump Rules. Vizio again integrated interactive Peacock sign-up links into the EPG and user interface. The technological advancements in new CTV operating systems have presented new strategic opportunities for content service providers to experiment with in pursuit of a comprehensive digital strategy.
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Last year, we also reported on Samsung TV Plus’s bold move, licensing the first season of The Rings of Power for their FAST/AVOD platform. It was a potential watershed moment as it validated FAST as having a valuable proposition for premium SVOD originals and opened up new opportunities. The deal was for a limited period and timed to air across the month preceding the launch of the Amazon Original’s hotly anticipated second season. We have seen stakeholders looking to find synergies in this way in traditional TV markets, with earlier seasons often made available on Free TV whilst a SVOD service launches subsequent seasons, but now FAST is emerging as an alternative collaborator.
Moving away from the OEM market, we’ve begun to witness other instances of paid and free streaming services aligning their offerings due to emerging synergies. Recently, Amazon announced the discontinuation of its standalone FAST service, Freevee, and the integration of its linear EPG into its flagship Prime Video platform. In this era of cord-cutting, FAST is rapidly becoming a key component of the digital media ecosystem, and it will be intriguing to observe how SVOD services continue to incorporate it into their overall digital strategy.
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