Demand 5, Channel 5’s catch-up platform, has finally arrived on Freesat’s Free Time smart TV platform.
At launch there will be more than 600 programmes available to Freesat viewers, including the most recent Big Brother series plus both of the UK’s premium antipodean soaps Neighbours and Home and Away.
Parents can placate their kids with catch-up episodes of Peppa Pig and Fireman Sam and when younger eyes have gone to bed, Free Time viewers can catch up on episodes of horror-riffic southern fried zombie apocalypse drama The Walking Dead.
Read Recombu Digital’s guide to FreesatAs is the case with TV shows available on the BBC iPlayer, ITV Player and 4oD, Demand 5 on Free Time lets you catch up on shows across all the Channel 5’s channels, that’s Channel 5, 5USA and 5*. The catch-up window varies from show to show but typically you get seven days in which to watch a missed show.
Free Time from Freesat is a subscription free satellite TV platform that lets you scroll back in time on the programme guide and pull up shows you’ve missed as well as access individual catch-up services from the on-demand menu. Check out our reviews of the Humax HDR 1000S and 1010S Free Time boxes for more information.
Emma Scott, Freesat’s managing director commented: “Every week, more than four million viewers enjoy their favourite TV on Freesat. As the consumer appetite for video on-demand grows, Freesat now offers viewer access to the four largest UK catch-up TV players, which account for 80 per cent of long form on-demand viewing today. We’re delighted that Freesat viewers can now enjoy all their favourite catch up TV in one place, for free.”
Paul Thornton-Jones, Channel 5’s head of digital media, added: “We’re very pleased to be adding Demand 5 to the Freesat Free Time service, further adding to the wide range of platforms and devices from which viewers can catch up on their favourite Channel 5 programmes and access a significant archive of our shows, including the ever popular Milkshake! strand.”
Freesat plans to launch a remote record app for phones and tablets in the future. This will turn Free Time into a service equivalent to YouView, in the sense that you get access to all of the PSB catch-up services plus a remote record function for your phone.
While YouView has other features, like the UKTV On Demand app, Free Time has a YouTube app that works with YouTube Leanback, a handy feature that lets housemates create YouTube video playlists to enjoy on the big screen.
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