In 2024, Freeview is about to undergo one of its biggest changes ever, with the upcoming launch of Freely. Today, more details have been announced regarding the Freeview-over-broadband platform, including a new logo and the first line of supported TVs.
The announcement highlighted Freely’s strategic partnership with Hisense, making it the first TV brand to integrate the upcoming streaming service into its Smart TVs.
Additionally, Freely unveiled its new brand identity, featuring a distinctive logo and the introduction of ‘Freemoji’, a character embodying the service’s modern and expressive ethos.
Freely is set to merge traditional broadcasting with modern streaming, aiming to bring live TV over broadband to the next generation of Smart TVs.
However, its upcoming launch brings with it significant compatibility issues, diverging from the current Freeview model’s universal accessibility.
Unlike Freeview’s wide availability on all UK TVs and a few set-top boxes, Freely will only be accessible on new, connected TVs released from 2024 onwards, raising questions about its reach and impact on viewers not equipped with the latest technology.
Freeview Via Broadband: What’s Freely?
Freely, which was announced in September 2023, represents a landmark in the evolution of UK television, merging the traditional broadcasting format with the convenience and flexibility of modern streaming and broadband.
Developed by Everyone TV (previously known as Digital UK, the company behind Freeview and Freesat), Freely is a collaborative effort involving the UK’s major broadcasters – BBC, ITV, Channel 4, and Channel 5.
At its core, Freely aims to provide live TV over broadband. This approach is a significant shift from the traditional model that relied heavily on aerial (Freeview) or satellite (Freesat) connections.
Currently, Freeview offers its ‘Freeview Play‘ platform, which is mainly a hub that brings together a few standalone streaming apps such as BBC iPlayer, Channel 4, UKTV Play and others.
By leveraging broadband for all of its channels, Freely is set to offer an integrated platform where viewers can access both live and on-demand content directly through their smart TVs.
The service is expected to feature a range of channels, likely including all offerings from the public service broadcasters, along with other free-to-air channels that are currently available on Freeview and Freesat (though not necessarily all of them).
Freely’s user interface is designed to be modern and intuitive, addressing the evolving needs of today’s viewers. It is expected to feature an advanced programme guide, enhancing the ease of discovering and exploring new content.
It is worth noting that broadband-based Freeview already exists via the pay-TV platforms – Sky Stream (and Sky Glass), Virgin Media Stream and the EE TV Box Pro.
However, these boxes only carry a selection of Freeview channels – and, crucially, you have to pay a monthly subscription fee in order to use them. Freely, like Freeview, will be free (aside from the TV Licence).
Unveiling Freely’s Brand and Character
While a lot is still unknown about Freely, today’s announcement regarding Freely has unveiled its distinct brand identity.
Central to this identity is the ‘Freemoji’ (yes), a character that encapsulates the “cheeky, modern” essence of Freely.
Amy Rowcliffe, Marketing Director at Everyone TV, describes ‘Freemoji’ as a representation of the varied emotions evoked by quality TV content:
“The name Freely represents the ability to watch for free but also the freedom to choose how and what you watch.
“We have a cheeky, modern, and expressive character – which we have dubbed ‘Freemoji’ – that brings the brand to life as the viewer’s welcoming and inquisitive companion.
“Happy, sad, excited, scared, great free TV has the power to make us feel every emotion and we wanted a character to represent this.”
Hisense: The First TV With Freely
In today’s announcement, a significant development for Freely was revealed: a strategic partnership with Hisense, the rapidly advancing smart TV brand in the UK.
This long-term collaboration, spanning five years, marks the first line of devices that will support the upcoming service.
Hisense will incorporate the new Freely brand across their 2024 TVs, remotes, packaging, and retail environments.
The collaboration signifies a mutual benefit: for Hisense, it adds significant value to its product offerings, and for Freely, it provides an established platform to reach a broader audience.
Howard Grindrod, Vice President of Hisense UK, highlighted the partnership as a testament to their dedication to enriching consumer experience:
“We’re proud to be leading the way and becoming the first TV manufacturers to bring Freely to the UK market.
“We’re always looking to enhance our product offering and find new ways to add value to our consumers, and this partnership with Freely does just that.”
Freely: Only On Smart TVs
The launch of Freely brings to the fore significant compatibility issues that could impact its widespread adoption.
Everyone.TV has confirmed to us Freely will be exclusive to “the next generation” of connected TVs slated for release in 2024.
This limitation indicates that older Smart TVs, along with existing streaming devices and Freeview boxes, will not support Freely at its outset.
This compatibility constraint presents a notable departure from the current Freeview model, which is universally available on all TVs sold in the UK, as well as a few set-top Freeview boxes.
In other words – viewers who want to watch Freely and stream Freeview via broadband for free, will have to buy a whole new TV.
The requirement for newer TV models to access Freely could potentially create a barrier for a substantial portion of the audience, especially those who are not in a position to upgrade their existing television sets.
This also prevents cheap, standalone streaming devices like the Amazon Fire TV stick or Roku, from supporting Freely.
Even new Freeview recorders – like the upcoming Manhattan T4-R – will not be able to support Freely, at least at this stage.
This is a peculiar decision – as one would think the purpose of Freely is to make it more widely available, while eliminating the need for an aerial or a satellite dish.
As Freely prepares for its launch, addressing these compatibility challenges will be crucial in ensuring that it does not exclude a significant segment of viewers who have been accustomed to the universal availability of Freeview.
The Future of Freeview: Transitioning To Freely
Freely’s emergence coincides with significant changes in the UK’s TV landscape.
Ofcom’s recent consultation, a process seeking opinions from the public and industry stakeholders, has stirred discussions about the future of traditional TV platforms like Freeview.
The consultation focuses on the financial sustainability and long-term relevance of these platforms, particularly as viewers increasingly shift to internet-based services.
This raises questions about whether Freeview, in its current terrestrial form, can remain economically viable in the long term, especially against the backdrop of rising streaming services and the costs of maintaining terrestrial broadcasting infrastructure.
Ofcom’s consultation hints at a future where Freeview might evolve into a more internet-centric service, incorporating elements of traditional broadcasting and new services like Freely.
This transition could ensure the financial sustainability of TV distribution platforms in a streaming-dominated landscape. However, this shift raises concerns about smaller channels currently thriving on Freeview and Freesat.
Their survival in a streaming-centric world, where they compete with hundreds of free, ad-based streaming channels, remains uncertain – even if they’re a part of Freely.
For now, Freeview is set to continue as a significant player in the UK’s TV landscape.
However, the big shift in television consumption, with Ofcom’s consultation and the evolution of services like Freely, suggests a future where traditional broadcasting might gradually give way to internet-based platforms.
But with Freely’s limited compatibility (for now), and each public broadcaster heavily pushing its own app (BBC iPlayer, ITVX, etc.) – it remains to be seen whether Freely can carry Freeview and Freesat into the future.
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I would be interested to know how much of the BBC licence fee is being used to fund this so only those with a brand new TV can watch it!
Freely spokesman said “Central to this identity is the ‘Freemoji’ (yes), a character that encapsulates the “cheeky, modern” essence of Freely.”
Sounds like the damn silly, annoying paperclip you used to get with Microsoft office. I don’t need a cute emoji to decide what I should be watching
How is Freely going to be free when you will have to pay for a internet service to use it? In the long run it will be more expensive. Why don’t they just switch off the Freeview service, install a free satellite dish & use the Freesat service? There is more bandwidth for more HD channels. Having a new system with can’t be used on current tvs or sticks is down right daft.
How is a satellite dish free?!
And who wants a dirty great dish on the side of their property? (not to mention, many live in buildings where that is not feasible)
Ed suggested that Freeview/Freesat would provide dishes free to those that didn’t have them and, judging by a glance at any row of houses in Britain, that isn’t many.
The Sky/Freesat dish is hardly “dirt great” either, at a diameter of about 25cm.
Like quite a few places in the country that get their aerial TV from a repeater transmitter rather than a main one, I only get a limited number of Freeview channels, so a Freesat dish and box provides me with the full range of channels
I’m currently travelling in the UK and happen to be staying at a place with a “smart TV” .
The 65 inch Samsung TV is not connected to an aerial and everything is done via apps.
Using the apps is rubbish because most are based upon standalone iPlayer or itvx apps. If Freely solves this weakness, then great. However, I’ve got to be signed in to everything, and i’m not doing that on someone else’s TV.
Backward compatibility really ought to be high priority for Freely otherwise the owners here have spent a small fortune on this TV and will be frustrated to find they can’t get the upgrade.
I’ve just spent over £300 on a Humax Aura from Richer Sounds, including a 6 year warranty. I fall asleep when watching TV so record everything I want to watch so I can watch it easily in short stretches. I also fast-forward through the adverts. I suspect they want to force me to watch the ads. I think I’m more likely to cut back on watching TV and maybe give up altogether rather than endure being forced to watch endless advertising.
Hi Margaret,
Even the Humax Aura according to various forums has not been updated as much. Its Humax’s main flagship model! Humax seem to have abandoned a lot of their Freeview products since covid. They now no longer produce Freesat boxes. They call this progress! If you need more help & advice about your Aura worth joining the Humax forum: https://myhumax.org/forum
Hope this helps! Have a great Christmas. John
Back when analogue TV was shut down, people could buy a freeviw box for using their existing TV and support was available for those who needed it.
The idea of having to buy a new TV just to get Freely seems like a backwards step. Surely an app could be created that would allow people to use their existing streaming sticks or Android / Google TVs.
Failing that, a cheap streaming box would help encourage uptake.
For me, though, I got fed up with Freeview and the seemingly never ending need to retune, the poor image quality and sound quality. I hope the image and sound quality is something Freely will address.
Hi Rik,
When you mention picture quality, do you watch in HD or SD? Sound quality really depends on setup. Flat TVs suffer from tinny sound. Do you listen via soundbar or surround system?
Freely, is not really going to improve this, at least not for the general consumer, only on high end products. It’s going to be marketing and sales drive to target new users wanting next gadget!
I took am annoyed about Freely, it’s not a good idea for most “sensible” users that are happy with what they are using. I plan to continue using my TV as long as possible.
So many devices will end up in waste sites for vanity of broadcasters and new tech ,hi-sense units still end up on recycled sites no sense
I hate having to access programs via broadband. This tells the broadcasters exactly what I’m watching, even and how many times. I prefer to keep my profile private, record what I want to, watch it when I want to without telling the world.
The point not mentioned in many comments is the total lack of options (other than buy a new, possibly inferior TV) to upgrade to a service integrating free to view and streamed services over broadband with a comprehensive epg across all/most services. We currently use Freeview Play with the standard co coax aerial and a Google Chromecast with TV. As long as the service is reliable I am not bothered how it is delivered but it must be easy and quick to use. Currently moving between a Freeview channel (eg BBC1, ITV etc) and switching to Google Chromecast to watch Discovery+ so I can watch rugby on TNT is a p*** in the a***. Freeview Play boxes can’t keep up with the streaming services and the TV sticks can’t provide a freeview service. Surely it is not beyond the “wit of man” to solve – perhaps it is really controlled by the bean counters and the marketing department who do not have any inclination to provide a service the customer really wants, needs ……..
Let me put this as clearly as I can:
Freely is the direct replacement, eventually, for Freeview and Freesat.
The idea is the you will be able to buy a TV, hook it up to your internet and get free linear TV channels, delivered via the internet instead of transmitters. Being integrated into TV’s means they can also offer catch-up / on-demand services such iPlayer, ITVX etc. It will work in the same way as a Freeview Play TV does today, but with all linear channels via the internet. Everything else will be pretty much the same: EPG (guide), on-demand etc.
There would be no use for a Freely app on other sticks, boxes etc., as these already have apps for broadcasters to provide their linear channels and on-demand / catch-up content.
That being said, the public service broadcasters *may* choose to offer a Freely app on sticks, boxes etc., but this would likely only be their (PSB) linear channels, possibly with links to their respective on-demand / catch-up services. They wouldn’t put all their on-demand / catch-up content into a Freely app on sticks, boxes etc., as they already have apps available on those devices. However, this isn’t yet known, and not likely for a year or two at the earliest.
What’s the quality of the channel’s received SD or HD or even uhd?
And sound.
I have been wanting a broadband EPG for a while. This looks like the answer. I can finally get rid of my aerial and get TV that doesn’t break up when the weather is bad.
What a rubbish article, i have a perfect good jvc smart tv i bought in 2019 and it future proved, it only 4 years old and will cope with new technology upgrade once Freely come along, nobody know what tv manufacturer has plan .
Totally agree with youScott.lets hope freely fails! Too many consumers wanting latest gadget, don’t really understand technology, the background driving the market, also how many actually know their equipment inside/out with features? For example, when Microsoft released media center, fa tastic piece of software, but abandone later on, due to lack of use, demand. Truth is users didn’t know it was there, how to use it. Consumers are going to waste more money. I love technology , but allow consumer to enjoy what they already have.
My point i’m making is Freely will eventually will be the replacement of Linear tv, this isn’t about failing. This about keeping up to date to the latest techolongy. Most of content i get is already online on my smart tv, i don’t see why i need to buy a new smart tv.
The comments here are baffling, but the article is also a bit ‘sensationalist’, causing doubt where it’s not needed:
1) Give it a chance. Even Freeview had to start somewhere – it also wasn’t available on existing tellies without a box, which weren’t particularly cheap up-front. And don’t forget, Freeview came from the remnants of OnDigital / ITV Digital, which would have ‘locked-up’ most of the terrestrial TV spectrum for pay TV channels. We wouldn’t have nearly as many free channels now had On / ITV Digital succeeded.
2) It’s more like Sky Stream or Virgin Stream, or even current Freeview / Freeview Play TVs. A ‘Freely’ branded EPG which delivers the channels over broadband instead of terrestrial, and likely the catch-up services (iPlayer, ITVX etc.) also.
3) We don’t know if it will be back-ported to older TV’s / boxes, but there’s a chance some will get it. It make sense to start with one ‘platform’ and ensure everything goes well, then expand if necessary.
4) The deal with Hisense is likely not exclusive and there will probably be more manufacturers in due course.
5) It likely won’t be available on dongles / sticks / boxes immediately, and possibly never will be. In the long-term, you will just buy a TV and instead of plugging in your aerial like you do with Freeview, you will plug it into your broadband, either via ethernet or wi-fi. It will, eventually, be a direct replacement for Freeview (and possibly / probably Freesat).
6) With increasing broadband coverage (mobile networks, fibre, LEOs), by the time Freeview is switched off, the vast majority will be able to use Freely. It may even cause a drop in pay-tv subscriptions. There will be a better service for those that are currently on ‘Freeview-Lite’ transmitters as they will get all channels, as everyone else does.
7) There will always be someone, somewhere who won’t be able to get it easily, or at all. This is the same now; there’s plenty of places that get limited or no service from terrestrial transmitters, be that TV or radio, and / or limited or nor service from mobile networks, fibre broadband etc.
8) Freeview isn’t going anywhere – at least not yet. Partially that depends on any frequency decisions made by the ITU as to when the current TV frequencies will be passed over for other uses (likely mobile networks). These decisions are outside of the Government’s (and BBC’s and other broadcasters) hands. Either way, we will have Freeview until 2030 at least.
9) Freely will become a bigger ‘thing’ as-and-when people upgrade their TVs. Nobody is saying everyone has to upgrade as soon as this comes out and throw away perfectly good tellies. If you have Freeview / Freesat now, you can still use them for a while yet (see point 8). If you have Sky / Virgin / other pay-tv provider, then there’s no change there either.
10) There’s nothing sinister here. The BBC isn’t out to get anyone or make anyone pay more for a new telly. Neither are any other broadcasters. All of the terrestrial Public Service Broadcasters are involved in Everyone TV, and they all make joint decisions for the organisation, which runs Freeview, Freesat and, now, Freely. They may well have provision for any future changes to the BBC’s funding (e.g. subscription instead of a licence fee), but this will likely work in a similar way to how Netflix, Disney+ etc. work. E.g., you pay and you log in, either via your TV or another device like a tablet, laptop or mobile.
BeeTee, you may be correct, but you’re being too kind.
There a huge pressures on the BBC and the licence fee, and thereby also content delivery.
In addition, all broadcasters are suffering from the high cost of power for the high power terrestrial transmitters, and you can be sure they all will want to stop that form of delivery. It’s already happening on medium wave AM transmissions.
Indeed, though the frequencies may be available, there’s nothing to say the broadcasters won’t find every way to cut costs, as everyone running a business will do so. However, I don’t see linear TV, especially the PSB channels, going anywhere within the next three years at least, by which time further gains will have been made on broadband availability.
It’s not likely to be an ‘all-or-nothing’ Freely vs. Freeview, but a more gradual switch over the next three-to-five years and then probably a harder cut when terrestrial transmissions start to drop. Of course, that’s also not accounting for war, ever-increasing energy issues / costs, civil unrest etc. which could make the whole thing moot.
Just bought a brand new TV, so Freely can go and take a run and jump if they think I’m buying another TV.
Stupid idea.
I agree 100%. I worked out £319 last year for a new Sharp 50 inch AQUOS Smart TV with built-in 4K equipped satellite receiver and a Freeview HD tuner, and I don’t see why I should spend more on a rubbish Hisense Freely TV just because Everyone TV says so. I would rather update the Freeview and Freesat platforms to HD capability with DVB-T2/DVB-2 transmission and give conventional DVB-T/DVB-S the heave-ho altogether. Those two transmission formats are more efficient and can carry fat more HD services as well as the capability to up the bit rates for picture/sound quality of channels that don’t support HD like That’s TV Talking Pictures TV and GREAT! TV.
Agree. Take a running jump, we have just had a major COVID crisis. Not the right time.
The Freely strategy is a confused one. In the short term licencing (or an exclusive commercial agreement) with Hisense is an outdated approach. All platforms are gradually integrating and becoming more and more homogeneous. Who remembers Now TV on its own boxes and it not being available on Firestick etc. ? Strategically the current linear TV providers to survive should recognise they quickly need to move to offer their programmes in an integrated way to actually compete with Netflix,Disney, Prime etc. That needs a backwards compatible cross platform application based solution that provides and pools programmes from all the Freeview/Freesat providers i.e. Seamlessly for selective viewing of current programming as well as a familiar complimentary user friendly online linear service that looks like Freeview/Freesat. Sadly, the “we’re different and need a bespoke solution with a chosen hardware provider” concept is a step backwards from supporting and growing the free TV for the masses concept that should actually be underlying Freely’s future direction.
It’s pretty clear why the industry wants this: you can be sure that the free service won’t allow you to skip ads. It’s much harder to see a single reason why users would want this.
plus also not be able to record. I LOVE pvrs & still use them! Been using them for many years & I WILL continue for many years more. Everyone should have a choice.
Who on the Everyone tv board has shares in Hisense?, I suspect this streaming service could be backward engineered to work on existing kit, ie existing smart tv’s and streaming devices all manufactured of a certain age, rather than create a free market what with Freesat with their Arris boxes and now Hisense only smart TV’s bit limiting me thinks, be interesting what this does for Hisense sails. This attitude does have it’s plus side hopefully when Freely becomes available to the masses the bugs will have been ironed out.
If the BBC is involved then I suspect freely will accommodate their future licensing model. And to ensure passwords and accounts aren’t ‘shared’ I suspect some kind of card may be involved. Hence the requirement for new hardware.
Some smart TVs have a built-in conditional access decoder slot for a plug-in conditional access decoder unit and smartcard, mine does and it is also is programmed with a fair few European and international satellites in it’s memory. Rather than scrap linear TV offerings I would like to see the BBC become a subscription service to make use of that facility on those TVs that have it, where you would order a conditional access decoder unit and smartcard through a Freephone number and set up a monthly or annual subscription form BBC services and leave the free to air satellite services alone to carry on as usual. This facility could also be used for BBC services transmitted on Freeview too where they’re encrypted and you can only view them with a conditional access decoder unit and smartcard upon payment of an annual or monthly subscription. On TV’s that do not have a conditional access decoder slot for an external conditional access decoder unit and smartcard, you would be issued with a plugin decoder that connects to your TV aerial lead or satellite dish lead and outputs to your TV via HDMI or suitable AV socket connection and you’d pay an annual or monthly subscription as you wish. If you have Virgin Media cable TV the BBC TV channels BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds would be tied into a basic tier subscription package. Online BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds would be available online by subscription only. That way if you don’t want to have BBC you don’t have to and everyone wins and the BBC would still get their money but there would be no compulsory or mandatory element to pay for it if you do not want to.
Yes, good point Andy. Theres more behind this and hopefully it will fail if consumers are sensible not to be interested in Freely.
Hi John, I have a theory about all of this Freely lark. Do you remember the fuss about the UK satellite beams being narrowed to restrict transmission to the UK? Well the answer was for expats to install larger dishes. I suspect that the new Freely will become subscription only but, there are clever people out there who will get around the problems and APKs will be flying around pretty quickly. The BBC thinks they have the monopoly over the airwaves, but they do not produce in particular, unbiased news. There is so much going on in the world which they do not see fit to report.
What about areas that have poor patchy or non existent broadband or poor mobile phone reception? I don’t like the sound of Freely, and those who can and want to get it, whom aren’t technically minded, may not realise you have to have decent speed broadband internet connectivity to use it properly, and waste their money. I would rather upgrade Freeview and Freesat to all HD transmission in DVB-S2 and DVB-T2 and get broadcasters of free to air channels hiding behind Sky’s paywall to go free to air so everyone can benefit from them, those channels that can’t go HD like That’s TV and Talking Pictures TV would be allowed to significantly up their bitrates significantly to improve picture quality and sound quality.
Bitrates won’t be changed if the channels don’t want to pay for it. They could increase (to a small degree) bitrate / resolution now, but they don’t wish to pay for it. Yes, changing to DVB-T2 / S2 will help, but it is not the be-all-and-end-all. And if you’re suggesting a switch to DVB-T2 / S2, what about those TVs that can’t decode this? It’s not a simple, overnight switch for everyone. There would need to be a degree of publicity, as there would be with a switch to DVB-I (or whatever format Freely runs on). And if you’re going to switch to DVB-2 / T-2, why not go the whole hog and switch everything to HEVC? There’s choices in everything and with DTT likely having 5-6 years left, and ever increasing coverage of internet (fibre, LEO, mobile etc.), it’s much most cost effective and efficient to slowly bring in a change to tv delivery via internet than prop-up an aging transmission network. Not saying I wouldn’t want Freeview to switch to DVB-2, but it’s not quite as simple as you might think.
Why not put some more Channels on HD in the future. And why not plan to put in some irish Channels in the future as well like RTE 1 and 2, TV3 and TG4 etc in the future as loads of Irish people live in Great Britain?
The problem with broadcasting Republic of Ireland TV channels channels across the UK is the thorny issue of broadcast rights. RTÈ and other Republic Of Eire channels only have the broadcast rights to show films and TV series to the area, if they stepped into Astra 2 and transmitted programmes across the UK and into parts of North West Europe on the UK spotbeam capacity, programme suppliers would ask for a much higher purchase price and broadcast rights for the whole of the UK which would be astronomically expensive, or they would refuse to supply anymore series and films, secondly, comes the thorny issue of sports rights, I don’t think the Irish football / rugby league etc associations would be very happy at sports coverage being made available to the whole of the UK either.
Why change things it should be left alone people can’t afford to pay for a new TV they’re having problems paying for Day to day things like food gas etc
Well said Peter! Totally agree with you.
More upgrades to exclude those that can least afford it.
There should be backward compatibility with freeview play.
Good point. Some users haven’t even caught up with basic Freeview yet. Not everyone has broadband. BBC seem to forget & not appreciate not every household has the circumstances to afford new tvs all the time.
Must admit this seems a strange decision and could kill the service before it’s started. I agree with previous comments. I was expecting it to be available via current streaming devices such as those offered by Google, Amazon, Roku etc or even a new streaming box from the likes of Manhatten or Humax. We have two tv’s, both LG and certainly better than current Hisense offerings so why should I change?
So it away to get everyone to bin the tv they have now and buy new ones in 2024 so its only for the well off not for the everyday person
I find it peculiar that they’re saying it won’t be available on existing TVs/smart devices that already support Freeview Play. I can only imagine that the software must be spectacularly badly written, if this is the case.
I also notice that below the Freely logo there are the terrestrial on-demand players, not the company logos. This *suggests* that it’s just some sort of front-end that will still throw the user into the players and not an truly intergrated environment.
I don’t understand it only working on brand new TVs and not plug-in tech (Roku, Fire etc). Is this a launch marketing strategy or an actual technical constraint?
Also, do you expect that the current streamers using IP Freeview services (eg Sky Stream) will improve and become less clunky if the terrestrial broadcasters open up their APIs for Freely integration?