Google TV hits new mark of 150 free channels as the TV Streamer prepares for lift-off
You can never have too many free TV channels, it seems
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GoogleTV is continuing to go hard on free, ad-supported channels (otherwise known as FAST channels) in the US – and it’s just added several more to its home screen to take it past a significant milestone.
As spotted by9to5Google, Google TV has added an extra 14 channels to its lineup (below), taking its total to 150 channels. As you can see from the list, there isn’t anything quite on the level of BBC Earth, but if you like Billiards or true crime, there could be some comforting time-sinks in there for you.
This ramping up of free channels comes as we head rapidly towards the launch of theGoogle TV Streamerbox, which will go on sale on September 24 for $99 / £99 / AU$159. When that box launches, the free channels will apparently be listed under a new Google TV Freeplay heading.
The new channels follow the addition of 10 new ones at the end of August, which included CBC News, FilmRise Horror, and Rig TV, which is themed around “showcasing the toughest jobs on earth.” Here’s the full list of new channels being added to Google TV’s home screen in the latest push:
Unfortunately, there’s still no news on when Google TV’s free channels will be coming to the Live tab outside of the US. Hopefully, we’ll hear more about that when the Google TV Streamer lands in a couple of weeks.
If you do live in the US, you can find the channels by heading to the Live tab on the main Google TV interface on your smart TV orChromecast with Google TV. For a full list of Google TV channels, head toGoogle’s official list.
The FAST race
Google isn’t the only tech giant embracing free, ad-supported TV – thebest free streaming servicesnow include TheRokuChannel,AmazonFreevee, andSamsungTV Plus, which runs on Samsung TVs.
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We’ve also recently seenSonyOne, a collection of 54 FAST channels,land on Samsung TVs, LG TVs, and TiVo Plus.In the UK, a new free, live TV service calledFreelylaunched in April to bring together the country’s major live TV channels in one place.
But there’s no doubt that Google TV is a significant player in the space, particularly with the Google TV Streamer launching soon. Naturally, Google has a new ad network called the Google TV Network, which is rolling out across its TV platform and onto the many devices that support it, including Sony,Hisense, andTCLTVs.
Fortunately, despite the imminent arrival of the Google TV Streamer, Google has said it will continue to update its Chromecast with Google TV dongles. A recent one rolled out a couple of days ago, and a bigger update with Android 14 and Matter support is due later this year.
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Mark is TechRadar’s Senior news editor. Having worked in tech journalism for a ludicrous 17 years, Mark is now attempting to break the world record for the number of camera bags hoarded by one person. He was previously Cameras Editor at both TechRadar and Trusted Reviews, Acting editor on Stuff.tv, as well as Features editor and Reviews editor on Stuff magazine. As a freelancer, he’s contributed to titles including The Sunday Times, FourFourTwo and Arena. And in a former life, he also won The Daily Telegraph’s Young Sportswriter of the Year. But that was before he discovered the strange joys of getting up at 4am for a photo shoot in London’s Square Mile.
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