Tubi

In 2014, Farhad Massoudi launched Tubi in San Francisco with a simple premise: give people a massive library of movies and TV shows for free, funded entirely by ads. The bet paid off. By the time Fox Corporation acquired the service in 2020, Tubi had already carved out a loyal audience tired of paying for multiple subscriptions. Today, it sits at the center of Fox's digital strategy, run under the Tubi Media Group umbrella.

The numbers tell a striking story. Tubi's library now holds over 300,000 movies and TV episodes, including nearly 400 original productions and about 250 live FAST channels. In 2023, users watched 8.5 billion hours of content, up from 5.1 billion the year before. Revenue hit $900 million, all from advertising, with no subscription fees whatsoever. The platform reaches more than 30 device types, from smart TVs to gaming consoles, making it one of the most accessible streaming services anywhere.

Under CEO Anjali Sud, who took the helm in September 2023 after leading Vimeo, Tubi has leaned into its identity as a destination for intentional, on-demand viewing. Unlike competitors like Pluto TV that emphasize linear channel surfing, Tubi positions its audience as actively choosing what to watch, which it argues leads to higher engagement. The company runs thousands of A/B tests each year, tweaking everything from recommendation algorithms to ad load, all measured against viewer retention. With 78 million monthly active users as of 2024, Tubi is the most watched free streaming service in the United States. [edit]