Sky’s just thrown its hat into the free streaming ring: This week, the TV giant rolled out a new streaming app called Xumo Play, bringing over 70 free channels and on-demand films and TV shows.
Available now on Sky Glass and Sky Stream, the app – which was already popular in the US – features a mix of older shows like The Dick Van Dyke Show and Whose Line Is It Anyway? alongside lesser-known titles.
In addition to the US imports, Sky is introducing six of its own FAST (Free Ad-Supported Streaming Television) live channels, tapping into its content archives.
These include themed channels like Pick Paranormal, which features Most Haunted, and several sports-focused options that showcase classic moments from Sky’s coverage (see the full list below).
This move comes hot on the heels of Tubi’s recent UK debut, and it’s clear that free, ad-supported streaming is having a bit of a moment.
With the cost of living constantly on the rise, Sky seems to be betting that Brits are in the mood for some free TV—though, of course, you still need a basic, paid Sky subscription to get these channels.
Xumo Play: Sky’s New Free Streaming App
Xumo Play, a popular Free Ad-supported Streaming Television (FAST) app in the US, has now made its debut in the UK through Sky.
Owned by Xumo, a joint venture between Comcast (which owns Sky) and Charter, this marks the first time Xumo Play has been available outside North America.
The app brings a wealth of content to UK viewers, featuring over 70 free streaming channels. These channels cover a wide range of genres, including news (with channels like Reuters), entertainment, and lifestyle programming.
The live channels work like “traditional” linear channels, in that they broadcast (or rather, stream) TV shows according to a predetermined schedule – and you can only watch what’s on right now.
In addition to the live channels, Xumo Play also offers an on-demand section, allowing users to watch films and TV shows whenever they want.
The on-demand library includes a mix of content, from known titles to more obscure offerings. Users can find shows like 21 Jump Street, Whose Line Is It Anyway?, Kim’s Convenience, The Dick Van Dyke Show, and Bonanza.
However, as with many free streaming services, especially in the UK, the film selection largely consists of titles you’ve never heard of, while the TV show offerings tend to include more recognisable, albeit older, series.
Both sections – live and on-demand – include advert breaks, which is how the service remains free (or rather – at no extra cost for Sky subscribers).
Currently, Xumo Play is available exclusively on Sky Glass and Sky Stream devices.
This means that customers with these broadband-based Sky TV platforms can access the app immediately, while those with older Sky boxes (such as Sky Q), can’t access the new service – for now.
Sky’s New FAST Channels
In addition to the existing, US-focused channels on Xumo Play, Sky is introducing six new FAST channels that leverage its own content archives.
These channels include:
1. Pick Paranormal: This channel is not for the faint of heart. It features Most Haunted, the fan-favourite TV show that investigates all things supernatural.
2. Emergency 24/7: This channel is packed full of drama and offers shows like Highway Cops, Air Ambulance ER, and Stop Search Seize, among others.
3. Sky Artist of The Year: A channel for art aficionados, viewers can catch up on Sky’s Portrait Artist of the Year and Landscape Artist of the Year.
4. Sky Sports Stories: Whatever their sport, Sky Sports Stories has a documentary for every fan – from EFL Rivalries to Her Huddle.
5. Sky Sports Classics: Viewers can delve into the Sky Sports archives with the likes of Premier League Icons and Premier League Legends.
6. Sky Sports Vault: This channel revisits a whole host of archive darts, EFL, and boxing content, including 30 Years of The PDC World Darts Championship and Fight Night.
These Sky-branded channels differentiate themselves from the predominantly American content found on the other channels within the app.
By offering more familiar fare to UK audiences, Sky is leveraging its extensive archive to provide unique value to its customers.
How to Watch Xumo Play
For now, Sky TV customers with Sky Glass or Sky Stream can find the free Xumo Play app in the apps rail of their device’s interface. Alternatively, users can access the app by saying “Xumo Play” into their Sky voice remote.
One of the app’s advantages is that no account creation is necessary to start watching, so you don’t have to mess around with usernames and passwords.
Sky has announced plans to expand the availability of Xumo Play and its new FAST channels. Later this year, the app is expected to become available on Sky Q boxes as well.
Furthermore, the new FAST channels will be integrated into the TV guide on Sky Glass and Sky Stream, allowing for easier discovery alongside Sky Ultimate TV’s lineup of over 150 channels.
The Growing FAST Landscape in the UK
Sky’s launch of Xumo Play is part of a broader trend in the UK streaming market. Several other players have been making moves in the free, ad-supported streaming space:
Virgin Media: Earlier in 2024, Virgin Media added 11 new FAST channels to its lineup, including themed channels like History Hunters, Deal Masters, and UKTV Play Laughs. These channels were in addition to 14 channels that were added in 2023.
Pluto TV: Owned by Paramount Global, Pluto TV has been operating in the UK since 2018 with both linear channels and an on-demand library. In late 2023, Paramount announced plans to merge Pluto TV with Channel 5’s My5 streaming service, creating a unified platform set to launch in the second half of 2024.
Plex Channels: While primarily known as a media server platform, Plex also offers free, ad-supported live TV channels and on-demand content.
The Roku Channel: Roku’s free, ad-supported service that includes a mix of older shows and Roku Originals.
Amazon’s Freevee: Formerly known as IMDb TV, Freevee is Amazon’s free streaming service that offers a mix of on-demand content and live channels, including the rebooted Neighbours.
Tubi: Launched in the UK just a few weeks ago, Tubi offers over 20,000 movies and TV episodes for free, supported by adverts. While its UK library is more limited compared to its US counterpart, it still provides a substantial amount of content.
Despite the growing popularity of these services, it’s important to note that the content offerings, especially in the UK, tend to be a mixed bag.
Many of the shows and films available are lesser-known titles or older content. However, services like Tubi and Freevee do include some more recognisable or “premium” content, often older seasons of popular shows or films from a few years back, as well as some originals.
Therefore, it was a matter of time before Sky entered this market. However, unlike most of the other free platforms, Xumo Play only works on Sky’s devices, so it’s not exactly free, as you still need a basic Sky subscription.
It’ll be interesting to see whether Sky makes Xumo Play more widely available in the future (in the UK), maybe even as an app for other, standalone streaming sticks.
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Michael Farrie
If no one else has pointed it out, it’s not a free service if you need to subscribe to Sky Glass/Stream which you do. It may also come to Sky Q. FAST channels are just live linear channels like we’ve always had, but with less effort put into them.
I’m surprised you haven’t seen this yet but 4K streaming has now launched on Now TV UK. It’s via a new add on called Ultra Boost. Adds all Sky sports 4K channels and selected tv shows/movies in 4K
Just published this a few moments ago 🙂
I’ve investigated the now TV app on Google play store and the reviews to say the least are very very poor ,not about the content but the serious buffering and the flaws and issues people are having with this paid service,cries of s**t and ripoff but to name a few
I appreciate your input Mr cord buster but you must be more genuine to your people,why don’t you tell them that with a VPN provider all the quoted channels and apps you mention apart from sky stream and sky glass have been available for many years including xumo play,the fact that the content provided from the USA as opposed to the UK is far greater,tubi doesn’t supply UK live channels at the moment but with a VPN subscription you can access the content from Canada USA and Mexico and Australia as well as UK content, please be more informative to your brethren