SportsTribal TV is claiming to have launched the first free, ad-supported sports streaming TV service in the UK, hosting a selection of 24/7 linear sports channels that the company says are not available on traditional pay-TV.
The provider says that its new offer will help what it calls under-represented sports bodies, leagues, rights owners and niche sports creators to turn their video content libraries into 24/7 linear streaming channels for OTT distribution to fans and audiences. This says the company will enable channel publishers to earn new revenues from TV advertising sold on their channel.
"There’s a generational shift happening across the TV world right now as younger viewers come of age who’ll never buy a pay-TV subscription,” explained SportsTribal TV CEO and Founder Frank Bowe. “Younger audiences have grown up on a diet of free social media video content so naturally expect the same from their TV services in the future, especially for sports. SportsTribal TV has been created specifically to help publishers reach fans who are living ‘off-net’ and contract free. Many sports have an abundance of video but not the experience or budget to build their own OTT service so SportsTribal TV provides linear channel distribution so publishers can stream 24/7 directly to fans without the high costs and technical hassle of going it alone.
SportsTribal TV is currently in beta on web and mobile in the UK hosting a range of free sports-themed channels. The service will roll out across connected TVs, streaming devices, TV app stores and mobile networks throughout in 2021.