Amazon is dropping the Freevee brand of its free online video service after five years. The service, part of the IMDb business owned by Amazon, was rebranded Freevee in 2022. It will now be folded into Amazon Prime Video. At least it is one less brand distraction for Freely, the online platform pitched as the successor to Freeview in the United Kingdom.
The origin of Freely can be traced back to the internet movie database that began in the United Kingdom in 1990. The online movie list was founded by Col Needham and was bought by Amazon in 1998 as one of its first acquisitions. It remains one of the top movie web sites in the world and powers movie listings on Amazon Prime Video and elsewhere.
Freevee started in January 2019 as Freedive, was rebranded to IMDb TV five months later and then to Amazon Freevee in April 2022.
The free video service was originally only available in the United States but expanded the United Kingdom in 2021 and Germany in 2022.
Freevee commissioned some original programming, including a revival of the Australian soap Neighbours.
Once Amazon added advertising to its Prime Video service unless people paid extra, the logic of a standalone service supported by advertising was unclear.
Freevee had already been integrated into Amazon Prime Video, so unless users had the separate Freevee app they were mostly watching within the Amazon environment anyway.
“We have built Prime Video into a first-stop entertainment destination where customers can personalize their viewing experience by streaming exclusive Prime member entertainment produced by Amazon MGM Studios, licensed movies and series, content from other services as an add-on subscription, live sports, blockbuster movies and series to rent or buy, FAST Channels and the complete Amazon Freevee content offering,” Amazon said in a statement.
“To deliver a simpler viewing experience for customers, we have decided to phase out Freevee branding. There will be no change to the content available for Prime members, and a vast offering of free streaming content will still be accessible for non-Prime members, including select Originals from Amazon MGM Studios, a variety of licensed movies and series, and a broad library of FAST Channels — all available on Prime Video.”