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If you own a FireTV stick or display you'll notice that the FreeVee streaming app has started to become more and more prominent. It's deceptively simple - they

If you own a FireTV stick or display you'll notice that the FreeVee streaming app has started to become more and more prominent. It's deceptively simple - they are taking old shows like Murder She Wrote and streaming them non-stop on a "channel" much like the old terrestrial broadcast networks did. They're solving the streaming problem for older customers that don't grok Netflix or Hulu. These shows take pseudo-commercial breaks and send you 2-3 ads tailored to you specifically. My wife didn't believe it until I did a simple Amazon search on my phone for automotive batteries. Not more than 30 minutes later the ads switched to some random LiPo battery for RVs.

joombaga 3y ago
PlutoTV is the same. I used to put on the Geek & Sundry channel and get ads from my employer.
- dsdsafklj 3y ago
  I know what you mean but I can't help but imagine a 60 year old man pointing at the camera and saying, "Get back to work, Steve."
  - tommica 3y ago
    Now that's targeted advertising!
    - supportengineer 3y ago
      I can think of something even more evil. What if ad networks allowed the advertiser to SUBSCRIBE to events generated by the ad viewer. For example, XYZ Toothpaste Inc gets a web hook that Targeted Consumer 123 has just started streaming TV Show "Foobar".
      - ndriscoll 3y ago
        It's not quite what you're describing, but look up demand side platforms. At scale, advertisers are given the opportunity to bid on real time events.
  - tomcam 3y ago
    It's funny reading offhand remarks like this because I laugh and then remember I'm well past 60
  - eastbound 3y ago
    Should employers advertise how good it is to work, to their own demographic?
  - DaiPlusPlus 3y ago
    > imagine a 60 year old man pointing at the camera and saying, "Get back to work, Winston Smith" FTFY
- dingnuts 3y ago
  Terrestrial cable is the same, too. I had a normal cable package for awhile (around 2020) and the advertisers clearly knew that my wife was in a particular medical category. Same w/ IPTV services like SlingTV, which I also used for a little while.
nvy 3y ago
>These shows take pseudo-commercial breaks and send you 2-3 ads tailored to you specifically. My wife didn't believe it until I did a simple Amazon search on my phone for automotive batteries. Not more than 30 minutes later the ads switched to some random LiPo battery for RVs. This is so depressing. We're living in the future and it's awful.
- pxx 3y ago
  I'd much rather my ads be targeted than generic. It increases value on both sides here. Comparing against the baseline of terrestrial broadcast, this is a far better experience than before.
  - ndriscoll 3y ago
    You're making the mistake of assuming the ad is for the best offer you'd be interested in instead of the one that makes the most money from you (i.e. the worst one for you). The expected utility to you is negative.
    - Sebb767 3y ago
      > You're making the mistake of assuming the ad is for the best offer you'd be interested in instead of the one that makes the most money from you (i.e. the worst one for you) You are making the mistake of thinking that this is a zero-sum game. The product that makes the most money is not necessarily the worst one, it might actually just be one with higher margins or even an actually superior product that just lacks mindshare; in the end, buying it might still add value to your live.
      - ndriscoll 3y ago
        Markets like Amazon are already full of people who will sell the exact same product with a computer generated brand name at slightly different markup. Even "trustworthy" brands do this kind of thing, and have for a long time. A system that knows everything about you (their goal) and tailors ads to you (or manipulates your ability to find offers) will inevitably converge on something that sells you the same thing, but at the maximum price you can be expected to be duped into.
gosub100 3y ago
I recently bought a "smart TV" and I was pleased to see that it comes with essentially 'cable TV' (IPTV, I guess?) without even needing to run an app or set up an account. You just click CH+/- or guide and you watch another channel. One of the channels plays 21 Jump Street (the 80's show) and a few other 80's classics, another 2 just play 80's/90's music videos exclusively. I think it's kind of neat that the internet has finally come around to make cable TV obsolete.
- Dalewyn 3y ago
  >I think it's kind of neat that the internet has finally come around to make cable TV obsolete. That's because internet is cable TV these days.
- disposition2 3y ago
  > I think it's kind of neat that the internet has finally come around to make cable TV obsolete. As a counterpoint, decisions by the FCC (during the previous presidential administration), are effectively making the internet a requirement for OTA TV in the new ATSC 3.0 spectrum.[1] Here’s hoping we get more consumer focused considerations in the future. The internet features are nice (if you have internet access) but shouldn’t prevent a consumer from accessing OTA ‘out of the box’ 1. https://youtu.be/nClxgUunmeE https://youtu.be/nClxgUunmeE
  - gosub100 3y ago
    I just watched that video a day or 2 ago. I was pretty surprised to see that, and I agree it makes no sense for the case of broadcast TV. My guess is it's a push from sports networks (90% NFL) and they'll arrive at some "compromise" to only turn it on during NFL and NBA games. Not only is it oppressive to viewers, but I think it's a terrible move for local broadcasters by actively blocking people who are already leaving/left in droves for the internet.
    - theage 3y ago
      Many broadcasters are positioning to accepted the broadcast part of their business as the freemium entry point into their online app. The ads will never be turned off everywhere but the better experience will only be found over the jump.
swatcoder 3y ago
Linear streaming is central to PlutoTV, which has been around for a while and is available on many platforms. It’s not really for people “that don’t grok Netflix or Hulu”. That’s one reason, I suppose, but the stronger reasons are: 1. Licensing and cost nonsense that none of us care about. 2. Channel surfing is an entirely different way to engage with low-attention content and has its own place. You may not “grok it” yourself, but the gist is that it greatly reduces the analysis paralysis of picking movies and episodes and doesn’t make you feel like you’re sitting down to watch something from start to finish. You just surf around and leave something and let it play. The lack of control is intentional and positive, and it can be a great avenue for discovery in a world where every on-demand front page has been lost to poor algorithm recommendations.
- joezydeco 3y ago
  The casual discovery was the thing people missed the most about cable TV. This comes close, as in they're linear channels of the same program in most cases, but it's familiar enough to work.
moribvndvs 3y ago
Amazon Video is also now including FreeVee garbage entries blended into “included with” results and it’s easy to miss unless you train yourself to check the source line above “Watch now” before pressing play. It seems this is mostly evident when looking at Customers also watched recommendations but I’ve seen it happen in the home sections, too. I hate it.

joombaga 3y ago

PlutoTV is the same. I used to put on the Geek & Sundry channel and get ads from my employer.

dsdsafklj 3y ago
I know what you mean but I can't help but imagine a 60 year old man pointing at the camera and saying, "Get back to work, Steve."
- tommica 3y ago
  Now that's targeted advertising!
  - supportengineer 3y ago
    I can think of something even more evil. What if ad networks allowed the advertiser to SUBSCRIBE to events generated by the ad viewer. For example, XYZ Toothpaste Inc gets a web hook that Targeted Consumer 123 has just started streaming TV Show "Foobar".
    - ndriscoll 3y ago
      It's not quite what you're describing, but look up demand side platforms. At scale, advertisers are given the opportunity to bid on real time events.
- tomcam 3y ago
  It's funny reading offhand remarks like this because I laugh and then remember I'm well past 60
- eastbound 3y ago
  Should employers advertise how good it is to work, to their own demographic?
- DaiPlusPlus 3y ago
  > imagine a 60 year old man pointing at the camera and saying, "Get back to work, Winston Smith" FTFY
dingnuts 3y ago
Terrestrial cable is the same, too. I had a normal cable package for awhile (around 2020) and the advertisers clearly knew that my wife was in a particular medical category. Same w/ IPTV services like SlingTV, which I also used for a little while.

nvy 3y ago

>These shows take pseudo-commercial breaks and send you 2-3 ads tailored to you specifically. My wife didn't believe it until I did a simple Amazon search on my phone for automotive batteries. Not more than 30 minutes later the ads switched to some random LiPo battery for RVs. This is so depressing. We're living in the future and it's awful.

pxx 3y ago
I'd much rather my ads be targeted than generic. It increases value on both sides here. Comparing against the baseline of terrestrial broadcast, this is a far better experience than before.
- ndriscoll 3y ago
  You're making the mistake of assuming the ad is for the best offer you'd be interested in instead of the one that makes the most money from you (i.e. the worst one for you). The expected utility to you is negative.
  - Sebb767 3y ago
    > You're making the mistake of assuming the ad is for the best offer you'd be interested in instead of the one that makes the most money from you (i.e. the worst one for you) You are making the mistake of thinking that this is a zero-sum game. The product that makes the most money is not necessarily the worst one, it might actually just be one with higher margins or even an actually superior product that just lacks mindshare; in the end, buying it might still add value to your live.
    - ndriscoll 3y ago
      Markets like Amazon are already full of people who will sell the exact same product with a computer generated brand name at slightly different markup. Even "trustworthy" brands do this kind of thing, and have for a long time. A system that knows everything about you (their goal) and tailors ads to you (or manipulates your ability to find offers) will inevitably converge on something that sells you the same thing, but at the maximum price you can be expected to be duped into.

gosub100 3y ago

I recently bought a "smart TV" and I was pleased to see that it comes with essentially 'cable TV' (IPTV, I guess?) without even needing to run an app or set up an account. You just click CH+/- or guide and you watch another channel. One of the channels plays 21 Jump Street (the 80's show) and a few other 80's classics, another 2 just play 80's/90's music videos exclusively. I think it's kind of neat that the internet has finally come around to make cable TV obsolete.

Dalewyn 3y ago
>I think it's kind of neat that the internet has finally come around to make cable TV obsolete. That's because internet is cable TV these days.
disposition2 3y ago
> I think it's kind of neat that the internet has finally come around to make cable TV obsolete. As a counterpoint, decisions by the FCC (during the previous presidential administration), are effectively making the internet a requirement for OTA TV in the new ATSC 3.0 spectrum.[1] Here’s hoping we get more consumer focused considerations in the future. The internet features are nice (if you have internet access) but shouldn’t prevent a consumer from accessing OTA ‘out of the box’ 1. https://youtu.be/nClxgUunmeE https://youtu.be/nClxgUunmeE
- gosub100 3y ago
  I just watched that video a day or 2 ago. I was pretty surprised to see that, and I agree it makes no sense for the case of broadcast TV. My guess is it's a push from sports networks (90% NFL) and they'll arrive at some "compromise" to only turn it on during NFL and NBA games. Not only is it oppressive to viewers, but I think it's a terrible move for local broadcasters by actively blocking people who are already leaving/left in droves for the internet.
  - theage 3y ago
    Many broadcasters are positioning to accepted the broadcast part of their business as the freemium entry point into their online app. The ads will never be turned off everywhere but the better experience will only be found over the jump.

swatcoder 3y ago

Linear streaming is central to PlutoTV, which has been around for a while and is available on many platforms. It’s not really for people “that don’t grok Netflix or Hulu”. That’s one reason, I suppose, but the stronger reasons are: 1. Licensing and cost nonsense that none of us care about. 2. Channel surfing is an entirely different way to engage with low-attention content and has its own place. You may not “grok it” yourself, but the gist is that it greatly reduces the analysis paralysis of picking movies and episodes and doesn’t make you feel like you’re sitting down to watch something from start to finish. You just surf around and leave something and let it play. The lack of control is intentional and positive, and it can be a great avenue for discovery in a world where every on-demand front page has been lost to poor algorithm recommendations.

joezydeco 3y ago
The casual discovery was the thing people missed the most about cable TV. This comes close, as in they're linear channels of the same program in most cases, but it's familiar enough to work.

moribvndvs 3y ago

Amazon Video is also now including FreeVee garbage entries blended into “included with” results and it’s easy to miss unless you train yourself to check the source line above “Watch now” before pressing play. It seems this is mostly evident when looking at Customers also watched recommendations but I’ve seen it happen in the home sections, too. I hate it.