tubitv.com
With so many streaming services out there, figuring out which ones are worth your time and money can be daunting. Every other day I hear about some new way to stream movies and TV shows. Some of them are free, some of them are cheap, but others can be rather pricey. Aside from the money you may spend, nobody wants to waste their time on a site or app that turns out to be garbage, right? That's why I write these reviews so that you don't have to figure that out for yourself.
That being said, there is a good chance that you have heard of the free streaming service that I am taking a look at today. Tubi has quickly skyrocketed to become one of the most popular and widely used free streaming services in the world. Having been founded just six years ago, it is rather impressive to see just how recognizable and how much of a household name Tubi has become.
Then again, just because something is well known does not always necessarily mean that it is quality. Sometimes great branding goes a long way to compensate for a subpar product. Is this the case with Tubi? Well, the only way to find out for sure is to dive in and take a look at everything that Tubi has to offer, where it comes from, whether it is going to be available on your preferred devices, what kind of content you can expect to find on it, how well it is designed, and what Tubi could potentially be doing better (if anything).
If you're wanting to check out some other streaming services in addition to Netflix and Hulu, I totally get that. The monthly streaming bills have been going up a lot lately, and it can get pretty frustrating trying to sift through all the different options. There are new platforms coming out all the time, each with their own unique content that you can't find on Netflix or Hulu. Eventually, the financial convenience that streaming sites used to provide over cable TV starts to come undone.
If I add up all of my streaming bills each month, I am getting closer to paying the same amount as I was paying for traditional cable back in the day. I thought one of the reasons for cutting the cord was to save some money! Well, thanks to free premium streaming services such as Tubi, hopefully, I can get back to saving on my monthly bills. Or, at the very least, I can be given an even greater selection of content without adding to my bills? That has to count for something, right?
Let's see if Tubi lives up to all the hype it has received.
History
In 2014, the company Tubi was founded by Farhad Massoud and Thomas Ahn Hicks of Ad Rise. In 2019, Tubi announced that it had over 20 million active monthly users. In September of the same year, Tubi boasted that users had streamed 132 million hours of content on the platform. Talk about growth!
One of the important factors that helped Tubi rise so quickly is its relationship with people at Fox. Sandy Grushow, notably, used to be the Chairman of Fox TV. He is an advisory board member of Tubi, and he isn't the only big-name person involved. Mark Amin also invests in Tubi, and he was formerly the Vice Chairman at Liongate. Furthermore, Ad Rise, which has been at the core of Tubi's operations from the beginning, has also raised $4 million in funding.
Although Tubi was very popular in Europe for a time, it has recently become unavailable there because of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which went into effect on May 25, 2018. Of course, in light of Tubi providing top-tier streaming content for free, one of the major caveats is that it is heavily data mined of users. I figure I should let you know this upfront so you can decide whether or not it is a dealbreaker for you.
Tubi appears to be growing in recent years as well. In 2019, for instance, CEO Farhad Massoud went public with Tubi's intent to double its 2018 expenditures on content licensing, bringing the annual number to nearly $100 million. The same year, Tubi signed landmark distribution agreements with NBC Universal, accounting for an additional 400 TV episodes and movies.
Tubi, a streaming service, has continued to grow in its reach by becoming available on more devices. September 25 saw Tubi's platform become available on Vizio Smartcast TVs, and in October, Tubi launched Tubi Kids, a dedicated channel on the platform that provides children's content exclusively. The service also launched in the United Kingdom in early 2020 and it has announced its intent to expand to Mexico as well.
Design
Tubi also includes exclusive content not found on Netflix.
Tubi offers an intuitive and stylish interface. I trust that any person who has used Netflix before will instinctively know how to navigate Tubi like a pro. It?s a similar design as Netflix, though I would argue that Tubi is even simpler. Easily browse titles, by Most Popular, New Releases, and genre. Each section, like Netflix, offers a side-scrolling menu of options. Tubi also includes exclusive content not found on Netflix.
Tubi looks good and works well. It is easy for anyone to use.
Content and Features
Tubi has a lot of titles, many of which are well-known and popular. Whether you're looking for your favorite classic movies, hot new TV series, or cult classics, Tubi has something for everyone. Although Tubi has content from over 200 partners, according to its splash page, some of the more notable production studios include Lionsgate, MGM, Paramount, NBC Universal, and Starz. As with any streaming service that specializes in syndicated (rather than original) content, though, the titles that are actually available are based on contracts and can change from season to season (depending on contract length).
Tubi is probably one of the most widely accessible streaming services out there. It's available on almost every device, so you won't have to miss out on anything. Whether you're using Roku, Android, iOS, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Xfinity X1, X Box, PlayStation, or your laptop, you'll be able to watch all of Tubi's thousands of titles no matter where you are.
When it comes to user features, Tubi, just like any other premium service, learns what you like over time. It will recommend TV shows and movies based on your viewing habits, and it allows you to add titles to customizable lists.
Mobile and Desktop Experience
Tubi has been rated as one of the highest-rated streaming apps on the Apple App Store. its average user rating is 4.7 stars, and it has received a rating of 4.6 from Android users. It seems that people really love the app!
The app is reviewed for its excellent selection of content, user-friendly layout, functionally flawless streaming, and top-notch service for being free.
Pricing and Plans
Although you don't typically pay with your wallet when using Tubi, some people argue that there are other ways to pay. For instance, you might pay with your time. Tubi is 100% ad-supported, so it's likely to be heavily laden with ads and commercial breaks. Furthermore, Tubi is also heavy with its data mining, which is why it's currently unavailable in the EU. If that's a dealbreaker for you, then Tubi may not be the free streaming service for you after all.
Suggestions that I have for Tubi
I would obviously love to see Tubi back off of my data and privacy. If they were to at least offer a premium option for which I could choose to pay a monthly fee to bypass ads, that would be great.
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