Free Sling TV confronts COVID-19 with access to news, shows, and movies

With the full implications of COVID-19 still bearing down on us, some companies are stepping up to the plate and attempting to bolster services as many daily activities have come to a halt. Free Sling TV availability has been announced today and while it doesn’t include access to the full catalog, everyone will be able to stream “news, plus thousands of shows and movies for the whole family, with no paid Sling TV account required.” Continue reading to learn more.

Free Sling TV for everyone

Sling TV has become a go-to source for folks looking to cut the cord and run away from traditional cable. A lot of techies know and have known about Sling TV for quite some time, but your average consumer likely does not. The new “Stay in & SLING!” initiative from Sling TV could drastically change that.

The new initiative from Sling TV confronts the COVID-19 crisis by providing free access to news, shows, and movies. Much like Amazon’s free streaming service, IMDb TV (full catalog here), you shouldn’t expect the latest movies and shows to be available, but free Sling TV is, well free.

While a full list of shows and movies included in Sling TV has not been provided, the company describes its current offering as having ABC News Live and “thousands of movies and shows suitable for kids and families.”

“To stay informed in these uncertain times, Americans need access to news from reputable sources,” said Warren Schlichting, group president, SLING TV. “With many Americans finding themselves staying at home, we have an opportunity to use our platform to help them deal with this rapidly evolving situation.”

Availability

Free Sling TV streaming is available now at Sling.com or by downloading an app on one of many supported platforms. If you like what you see, paid streaming packages start from $20.

9to5Toys’ Take

For anyone already with a paid streaming subscription, it’s likely they’ll find the free Sling TV selection to be less robust than what they’re used to. This is in-line with IMDb TV, but it’s hard to complain about free content, especially when it certainly costs Sling TV to provide this service to everyone.

Arguably any expense incurred can be written off as marketing since this move is bound to make an impression on a lot of potential customers that could end converting to be a full-on subscriber after trying the full-blown service. Having used it before, I found it to be quite polished, painting a clear picture why we included it on our list of free streaming service trials to check out while social distancing.

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