It looks as if the likes of Leverage and Bosch:Legacy will not be streaming on IMDb TV as planned. But fans of both these shows and the slate of other original programming shouldn’t worry too much. The scheduling plans haven’t changed but the name of the platform is going through a change of identity.
From 27th April, IMDb TV (which has tripled monthly active users in the last two years) will be known as Amazon Freevee, a rebranding meant to better represent the status of the platform as a free-to-view (though ad-supported) platform.
“Over the past two years, we have seen tremendous growth for our AVOD service and are committed to bringing our audiences premium, free-to-consumer content. We’re looking forward to building on this momentum with an increasing slate of inventive and broadly appealing originals, and are excited to establish Freevee as the premier AVOD service with content audiences crave,” ” said Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon Studios.
Technically this isn’t the first name-change for the company – it launched as Freedive in January 2019 but it has increased its output with several key dramas and shows (such as the ones above). However some people are still unaware they can get the free platform via Amazon (which doesn’t require an Amazon Prime subscription, only a valid Amazon account) so the new name should clarify that more clearly and raise its profile. Nor will it come as a huge shock to UK viewers, where the service already had a successful launch under the Freevee banner last September. The further international roll-out of the Freevee brand will start in Germany.
