Streaming Service TUBI TV Launches
TV Network and Streaming Launches | Apr 1, 2014
AdRise, Tubi TV, Twentieth Century Fox
Over-the-top content platform and free ad-supported streaming television service Tubi launched on April 1, 2014. As of May 2024, the service had 80 million monthly active users.
Tubi was founded by Farhad Massoudi and Thomas Ahn Hicks of AdRise in San Francisco, as a free service under the name Tubi TV. In May 2017, the pair raised $20 million in seed funding from Jump Capital, Danhua Capital, Cota Capital, and Foundation Capital. In June 2019, Tubi announced that it had over 20 million active monthly users, and later in September, the company reported that users had streamed 132 million hours of content. In September 2020, the company reported 33 million monthly users. In February 2019, Tubi signed a distribution deal with NBC Universal, which includes 400 TV episodes and films.
On March 17, 2020, Fox Corporation announced that it would acquire Tubi for $440 million in cash. Farhad Massoudi remained at the company, which would continue as a separate subsidiary.
As of January 2023, Tubi’s programming includes more than 40,000 films and television series from more than 250 American and foreign providers. As of 2024, the service has a notable selection of cult and exploitation films, along with independent films, television series and documentaries centered on popular culture, gaming and cult cinema.