Tubi

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For the ancient Egyptian month, see Tobi (month).
Tubi, Inc.
Tubi logo.svg
Type of businessDivision
FoundedApril 1, 2014; 7 years ago (2014-04-01)
Headquarters
San Francisco, California
,
United States
Area served
    • United States
    • Canada
    • Mexico
    • Japan
    • Australia
    • New Zealand
OwnerIndependent (2014–2020)
Fox Corporation (2020–present)
Founder(s)
  • Farhad Massoudi
  • Thomas Ahn Hicks
Key peopleFarhad Massoudi (CEO)
IndustryEntertainment
URLtubitv.com
RegistrationOptional
UsersIncrease 33 million monthly active users (as of January 19, 2021)
Current statusActive

Tubi is an American over-the-top content platform and ad-supported streaming service owned by Fox Corporation offering online streaming from a library of films and television series for free.[1][2] The service was launched on April 1, 2014, and is based in San Francisco, California.[3][4] As of January 2021, Tubi has 33 million monthly active users.[5]

History[edit]

Tubi was founded by Farhad Massoudi and Thomas Ahn Hicks[6][7] of AdRise in San Francisco, launching in 2014 as a free service.[8][9][10] In May 2017, they raised US$20 million in a round of funding from Jump Capital, Danhua Capital, Cota Capital, and Foundation Capital.[11] In June 2019, Tubi announced it had over 20 million active monthly users,[12] and later in September, the company reported that users had streamed 132 million hours of content.[13] In September 2020, the company reported 33 million monthly users.[14]

Sandy Grushow, former Fox TV chair, is an advisory board member.[15] Mark Amin, former vice chair of Lionsgate, is an investor. Adrise, the company behind Tubi, has raised $4 million in capital. Principal investors include Foundation Capital, Bobby Yazdani, Zod Nazem, SGH Capital, and Streamlined Ventures.[16][17]

In 2019, CEO Farhad Massoud announced Tubi would nearly double its 2018 spend on licensed content, close to US$100 million.[18] In February 2019, Tubi signed a distribution deal with NBCUniversal, which includes 400 TV episodes and films.[19]

On September 25, Tubi became available on Vizio Smartcast.[20] On October 21, Tubi launched Tubi Kids, a dedicated hub for the streamer's children-centric content via Roku and supported devices.

In April 2020, Fox Corporation acquired Tubi for $440 million; Farhad Massoudi would remain at the company, which would continue as a separate subsidiary.[21][2]

Global availability[edit]

Tubi became inaccessible throughout the European Union as a result of the GDPR entering into force on 25 May 2018.[22][23] It was later announced that Tubi would relaunch in the United Kingdom by early 2019.[24][25] As of 15 July 2021, Tubi has yet to relaunch in the United Kingdom. According to their website, they "hope to relaunch in the UK and EU in the future"[26] and is "working on compliance [with GDPR] and is planning to re-launch in European countries soon".[27]

Tubi officially launched in Australia on 1 September 2019.[28]

In January 2020, Tubi announced an expansion to Mexico, in a partnership with TV Azteca.[29]

Programming[edit]

As of June 2021, Tubi's programming includes over 20,000 films and television series from over 250 content partners. In addition to TV shows from Fox Entertainment, other providers have included Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Gaumont Film Company, Paramount Pictures, Magnolia Pictures, Lionsgate, Skydance Media, ErosSTX, Bento Box Entertainment, Epic Pictures, Oscilloscope Laboratories, Sony Pictures, Constantin Film, Nordisk Film, Rat Pack Filmproduktion, Warner Bros., Studio 100, nWave Pictures, Your Family Entertainment, Shout! Factory, Nelvana, WildBrain, 9 Story Media Group, Boat Rocker Media, Bleecker Street, FilmRise, Bridgestone Multimedia, Wow Unlimited Media, Entertainment One, Regency Enterprises, Invincible Entertainment, Safier Entertainment, TriCoast Worldwide, Funimation, Xilam, NBCUniversal, Viz Media, and Bob Ross Inc.[30].[31][32] The service also carries local news from Fox-owned stations and affiliates.[33] and includes Fox Weather's programming as well.

Tubi uses a real-time bidding platform for advertisers that deliver video ads across various platforms.[34]

The service launched its first slate of original content in 2021, including original television films and television series.[35] In December 2021, Fox acquired MarVista Entertainment in a move to bolster Tubi's library and leverage its production capabilities.[36]

Original programming[edit]

Title Genre Premiere Seasons Runtime Status
Meet, Marry, Murder[37] True crime docuseries October 6, 2021 1 season, 13 episodes 40–48 min. Pending
The Freak Brothers[38] Adult animated comedy November 14, 2021 1 season, 8 episodes 25 min. Pending

Original films[edit]

Title Genre Release date Runtime Language
A Chance for Christmas Romantic comedy June 18, 2021 1 hour, 32 min. English
Twisted House Sitter Thriller July 16, 2021 1 hour, 23 min. English
Swim Thriller August 13, 2021 1 hour, 26 min. English
Tales of a 5th Grade Robin Hood Family comedy August 27, 2021 1 hour, 24 min. English
The Deadliest Lie Thriller September 24, 2021 1 hour, 22 min. English
Famously Haunted: Amityville Horror documentary October 15, 2021 1 hour, 23 min. English
Upcoming
10 Truths About Love[39] Romantic comedy February 2022 TBA English
Corrective Measures[40] Science fiction TBA TBA English

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer And Lionsgate Invest In adRise -- Parent Company Of Tubi TV -- And License Library Content To Fuel Ad-Supported, Video-On-Demand Service". StreetInsider.com. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  2. ^ a b Goldsmith, Jill (2020-04-20). "Fox Closes Purchase Of Tubi In Day Of Streaming Deals". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
  3. ^ Niksa, Matt (2019-01-10). "Streaming companies eye contrasting business models, economic issues". Boston University News Service. Retrieved 2019-01-10.
  4. ^ Reisinger, Don (2019-04-28). "What Is Tubi (and Is It Worth It?)". Tom's Guide.
  5. ^ "Tubi: Half of 33 Million Monthly Users Under Age 35 – Media Play News". Retrieved 2021-05-25.
  6. ^ Goodwin, Richard (2020-07-21). "Tubi is Just Like Netflix – Except It's 100% FREE..." Know Your Mobile. Retrieved 2020-08-10.
  7. ^ MyitSolutions (2020-04-21). "5 Best Legal But Free Movie Streaming Websites - Newscase". News Case. Retrieved 2020-08-10.
  8. ^ Roettgers, Janko (16 April 2014). "Tubi TV wants to take on Crackle with free movies and TV shows". GigaOm. Retrieved 15 August 2019.
  9. ^ Spangler, Todd (16 April 2014). "Tubi TV Free Internet Video Service Launches with 20,000 Shows and Movies (Most of Which You've Never Heard Of)". Variety. Retrieved 15 August 2019.
  10. ^ "Fox buys Tubi for $440m". C21media. Retrieved 2020-08-10.
  11. ^ "Tubi TV Raises US$20 Million in Round of Funding". Anime News Network. 13 May 2017. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
  12. ^ Roettgers, Janko (2019-08-05). "Tubi Launches Marketing Campaign in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Detroit". Variety. Retrieved 2019-11-11.
  13. ^ "With Streaming Up 40% Since May, Tubi to Launch Tubi Kids & Expand to UK".
  14. ^ Tubi Monthly Users Jumps 65% To 33 Million, View Time Doubles During Pandemic - David Bloom, Forbes, 16 September 2020
  15. ^ Baumgartner, Jeff (2015-03-11). "Tubi TV Lands Paramount Flicks". Broadcasting Cable. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
  16. ^ "AdRise Raises $2 Million From Foundation Capital to Put Video (And Ads) On More Connected TVs". TechCrunch. 16 October 2012.
  17. ^ "AdRise Launches Tubi for free VOD". RapidTVNews. 18 April 2014.
  18. ^ Hayward, Andrew. "Tubi: Everything you need to know about the free movie and TV streaming service". Tech Radar. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  19. ^ "Tubi Inks NBC Universal Catalog Deal – Media Play News".
  20. ^ Lafayette, Jon. "Tubi Available Via Vizio Smartcast Sets". Retrieved 2019-09-25.
  21. ^ Baysinger, Tim (17 March 2020). "Fox Buys Ad-Supported Streaming Service Tubi in $440 Million Cash Deal". The Wrap.
  22. ^ "Tubi TV is a completely free Netflix alternative, but there's a huge catch". 19 June 2018.
  23. ^ "Tubi is the largest free movie and TV streaming service in the US. We are not available in Europe due to changes in EU laws".
  24. ^ "Tubi heads to the U.K., launches Tubi Kids". FierceVideo.
  25. ^ White, Peter (October 14, 2019). "AVOD Service Tubi To Launch In The UK In 2020; Preps Kids' Service – Mipcom".
  26. ^ "Tubi Supported Devices outside of the US". Help Center. Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  27. ^ "Tubi is the largest free movie and TV streaming service in the US. We are not available in Europe due to changes in EU laws". gdpr.tubi.tv. Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  28. ^ Hayes, Dade (August 28, 2019). "Tubi TV Sets Launch In Australia In First Leg Of International Streaming Expansion". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  29. ^ Hayes, Dade (January 21, 2020). "Tubi Will Expand To Mexico Via Deal With Top Programmer TV Azteca". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  30. ^ "All 31 seasons of Bob Ross' 'The Joy Of Painting' have been made free online". Happy Mag. 2020-04-11. Retrieved 2020-08-19.
  31. ^ "Tubi is A Really Great Free Cord Cutting Streaming Service With 15,000 Free Movies & TV Shows". Cord Cutters. 23 October 2019.
  32. ^ "Tubi TV Grabs $6 Million From MGM, Lionsgate And Others For Its Free, Ad-Supported Streaming Service". TechCrunch. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  33. ^ Ben Munson (11 February 2021). "Tubi grows live local news offering to nearly 100 channels". Fierce Video.
  34. ^ Flood, Vincent (2012-03-15). "AdRise Launch RTB-Based Connected TV Ad Platform". VideoAdNews. Archived from the original on 2012-03-26.
  35. ^ Hayes, Dade (2021-04-30). "Fox-Owned Tubi Sets Fall Launch Of Originals, Says View Time Rose 54% In Q1; Slate To Span Genres And Include Animation & Documentary". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-04-30.
  36. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (2021-12-13). "Fox Entertainment Acquires Top TV Movie Producer & Distributor MarVista Entertainment". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-12-14.
  37. ^ White, Peter (September 21, 2021). "Michelle Trachtenberg To Host True Crime Docuseries 'Meet, Marry, Murder' For Tubi". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
  38. ^ White, Peter (October 19, 2021). "Woody Harrelson & John Goodman-Voiced Series 'The Freak Brothers' Set As First Tubi Animated Original". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
  39. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (September 23, 2021). "Camilla Belle To Star In Tubi Original Movie '10 Truths About Love'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
  40. ^ White, Peter (September 8, 2021). "Tubi Bolsters Original Movie Drive With Bruce Willis Sci-Fi Feature 'Corrective Measures'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 21, 2021.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tubi&oldid=1065468854"