Channel 4 Prep Exclusive UK Streaming Channels for Freely’s Broadband TV Service
Public service broadcaster Channel 4 has this morning announced the launch of three new streaming channels – 4Reality, 4Homes, and 4Life, which are to made exclusively available via the new broadband-based live TV streaming service – Freely – in the UK.
Freely, which first launched in April 2024 (here), is not currently being pushed as a replacement for the ageing terrestrial Freeview (inc. Freeview Play) and satellite-based Freesat TV platforms and should, at least for now, be seen as more of a complement – a different kind of service that helps to make broadcast TV more accessible. The change is important because the age of traditional terrestrial TV signals, which came via the airwaves, is expected to gradually come to an end as gigabit broadband nears almost universal UK coverage by 2032 (currently c.88%).
The big news today is, as above, that one of Freely’s key backers – Channel 4 – has just become the first public service broadcaster to launch a range of three new streaming channels, which will be exclusively available on Freely.
Advertisement
With the new streams, Freely will offer more than 50 live channels over Wi-Fi and broadband links, alongside “more on-demand shows than any streaming service in the UK” (we haven’t been able to independently verify that claim).
Channel 4’s Exclusive Streaming Channels
➤ 4Reality (channel 67): sometimes risqué, often funny and always entertaining. 4Reality from Channel 4 – the original home of the best reality TV – brings favourites across real-life drama, sass, romance and rivalry from Married at First Sight, Naked Attraction and First Dates to Made in Chelsea.
➤ 4Homes (channel 68): from massive mansions to amazing spaces, from places in the sun and DIY in chateaus, to homes in the best-of-British locations, 4Homes showcases all places great and small spanning shows such as Grand Designs, A Place in the Sun and Location, Location, Location.
➤ 4Life (channel 82): real lives, real people (and real dogs too). And huge helpings of delicious food. Meet people doing amazing things – often in beautiful places. 4Life showcases the great content genres channel 4 viewers love including travel, food and animals, from The Dog House to Travel Man.
More channels are also expected to join the line-up as the platform continues to grow.
Grace Boswood, C4’s Director of Technology & Distribution, said:
“We’re proud to lead the way among Britain’s broadcasters by enhancing Freely’s offering. The launch of our new streamed channels further accelerates our transformation into the streaming age as the world’s first public service streamer. It also continues our record of digital distribution firsts to benefit advertisers and viewers.”
Freely has also been quietly improving their device support and recently confirmed plans to launch on Netgem’s new streaming TV box during Q4 2025 (here); such boxes are typically bundled by broadband ISPs like Brsk, TalkTalk, CommunityFibre, Wightfibre and others. The BBC are also understood to be considering the launch of a streaming box (here).
Advertisement
However, Freely’s adoption is likely to remain limited until the service arrives on popular streaming devices from Amazon, Google and Roku, but at present there’s no clear indication of whether or even when this will happen.
Mark is a professional technology writer, IT consultant and computer engineer from Dorset (England), he also founded ISPreview in 1999 and enjoys analysing the latest telecoms and broadband developments. Find me on X (Twitter), Mastodon, Facebook, BlueSky, Threads.net and Linkedin.
« Top 17 Largest UK Full Fibre Broadband Networks by Coverage – H2 2025
Advertisement
Leave a Reply
Privacy Notice: Please note that news comments are anonymous, which means that we do NOT require you to enter any real personal details to post a message and display names can be almost anything you like (provided they do not contain offensive language or impersonate a real persons legal name). By clicking to submit a post you agree to storing your entries for comment content, display name, IP and email in our database, for as long as the post remains live.
Only the submitted name and comment will be displayed in public, while the rest will be kept private (we will never share this outside of ISPreview, regardless of whether the data is real or fake). This comment system uses submitted IP, email and website address data to spot abuse and spammers. All data is transferred via an encrypted (https secure) session.
Needs an app, simple as that. The Public Service Broadcasters (BBC/ITV/CH4/CH5) have been complaining in the last week about how they are threatened by streaming services, well yes kids today are watching the likes of YouTube on their phones & tablets as much as they are on TVs. So then they go and restrict the method of access with Freely. Talk about doublespeak.
I’m curious what reason they have for not just making it an app?
Is it technical e.g. performance concerns, DRM/piracy? Is it financial e.g. revenue sharing demands or licensing fees?
Even Sky released an app for games consoles.
The DRM/Piracy argument really shouldn’t hold water. As you say all the other streaming providers can make it work as an app as indeed the PSBs can with their own players (BBC iPlayer / ITV X etc).
10 years ago the public service broadcasters spent a fortune on legal cases to shutdown TVcatchup so people couldn’t watch BBC/ITV/C4 online. The public have moved on without them and they are slowly fading into history.
Was the same with music industry, stuck with issuing physical media and ignored the internet & then complained when file sharing happened under their nose. The thing was a lot of music that was being shared was “out of print” anyway so you could not go into a shop and buy it even if you wanted to. Result the music industry was decimated essentially by its own inertia and failing to adapt to a changing market.
The content will still be available on channel 4’s app. This is just a way of showing that content in a linear fashion.
Why would they want an app that would compete with their existing offerings?
4K HDR ought to be the default resolution now, at the worst 1080p50. Yet we still have ITVX,C4,C5 streams in 1080p25, is this any better on Freely?
My dad just picked up a new Panasonic TV which has this bundled by default. Picking a channel that’s known to be pretty garbage in quality, plays immediately in that expected quality. within a second or two it increases to a very crisp picture.
Honestly I was pretty surprised at how good it looked. If I can get TV recordings working on it to USB (seems to be supported but the FireTV OS leaves a *lot* to be desired) then it’ll slam dunk replace the old freeview box.
Tend to find most Freely channels settle on 1080p and varies between 25, 50 and 60 in our experience.
Same if watch live channels through broadcaster apps, including the broadcaster Freely version of the apps or the Fire TV/android versions.
Yet the On Demand from the broadcasters and other apps including YouTube are in 4K formats with no issue.
Based on our experience of our TCL 43PF650K Fire TV, that also supports FreeView (including the Internet based FreeView channels) and FreeSat.
It also supports/integrates the live FAST channels of the likes of Plex, Pluto and Prime etc.
For a varied and fragmented market, very happy the TV gives us the best of most worlds.
Look at other TVs on market or look back at older TVs including likes of LG, there is either too many comprises or you have to attach to many devices and/or dongles.
Think most of the platforms, manufacturers, broadcasters and services are bringing on most of the apathy themselves with their own various vested interests.
@Lee
A quick question: How can you tell what the frame rate and resolution are in the Channel4 app, for instance?
Been using freely on my new tv, got to say it’s not very good.
Very slow and laggy, no ability to save channels you watch as a favourite,adds itv sd in between bbc 2 hd and channel 4 hd with itv hd at 61 lol, to get round this and have channels 1,2,3,4,5 all in order and hd you have to use no tv aerial at all, relying on Internet for everything.
Its far from replacing freeview.
Wow, that really makes me want to go out and buy a TV with Freely on it and get a TV licence, so I can watch these channels.
If you believe that, I have a bridge to sell you.
More reality rubbish as if there is not enough that trash already on TV, there will be nothing new, just repeats of what have been on other channels and rehash rubbish, British TV all over these days.
Overall I think this is a good move. Although there are risks, mostly in annoying the Freeview users who don’t have access to this free-to-air offering, it makes sense to curate – and thus cheaply – some of your extensive back catalogue to nudge viewers to adopt the platform. This is also part of Channel 4’s ambitious Fast Forward strategy, a pivot away from broadcasting and toward IPTV and digital streaming.
TV is not free in the UK.
I do not know how they can get away with naming the product without the ASA intervening.