Sony brings free channels with quality content to Samsung and LG TVs

Free TV shows and movies from FAST (free, ad-supported TV) streaming services are fast catching on, with many of today’s newer TVs getting access to lots of free-to-watch content that you don’t need to pay for. Examples include Samsung TV Plus, which comes with new Samsung TVs, and LG Channels, available with LG TVs.

Now, Sony is getting into the FAST game as well, although curiously it’s not launching on its own TVs, but instead partnering with Samsung, LG and TiVo to launch the new Sony One service.

Sony One is a broadcast service that incorporates a total of 54 free, ad-supported channels that will carry some premium content, such as Breaking Bad and Game of Thrones.

The service is launching in nine European countries at first, including the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland. Sony said the service will be tailored to each specific country, meaning that the shows will most likely be broadcast in that region’s native language.

The new channels will arrive on Samsung TV Plus, LG Channels and TiVo Plus, which means that anyone who buys a new Samsung OLED TV or LG OLED TV will be able to access them.

In a press release, Sony detailed some of the top FAST channels available on Sony One. They include:

• Sony One Comedy TV – featuring Seinfeld, The Goldbergs, The Nanny and other hit comedy shows.
• Sony One Thriller TV – with a number of “action-packed, high-thrill series”, such as Better Call Saul, Breaking Bad and Justified.
• Sony One Faves – which offers classic hits Bewitched, Dawson’s Creek and Community.
• Sony One Comedy HITS – Another comedy channel, but this one will be focused on classic and quotable comedy series from across the decades, with titles including Jerry Maguire and Easy A.
• Sony One Action HITS – yet more action, but this one is movie-focused as opposed to series-focused, with names such as Men in Black, Zombieland and District 9.
• Sony One Blacklist – Dedicated to the popular crime thriller series that follows a fugitive who teams up with a rookie FBI profiler to hunt down other wanted criminals and terrorists.

Other channels include Sony One Shark Tank and Sony One Dragon’s Den, which showcase the popular reality-format where budding entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to renowned multi-millionaire moguls in the hope of securing investment. In addition, there will be various localized channels, such as Sony KAL Hindi and dedicated channels for Spanish speakers in the U.S., Mexico and Brazil.

Sony One will launch in Europe next month, and the service could be quite a big deal. After all, Sony Pictures Entertainment has access to a portfolio that includes some of the biggest movies and TV shows in the industry, and many of these may soon be free to watch.

For consumers, there’s a lot to like – not only does it mean more free content to watch, but that content is actually going to be of a pretty high standard, making it an appealing option at a time when the major video streaming platforms are hiking their prices.