FOX Launches Local News Streaming App With Stations in Three Major Markets; More Cities to Come
The FOX streaming family is getting a little bigger this week. TVNewsCheck is reporting the company has launched a new streaming app called FOX Local, which is available for free now to users in Atlanta, Detroit and Washington, D.C.
The new app will feature local content from FOX-owned stations in these markets. News, weather and other local programming will be available, and the company has confirmed that the rest of the 17 local FOX stations it owns will be added to the platform this summer. The app will not bring on any FOX affiliates that are owned by other broadcasting companies, however.
“Fox Local is the crucial next step in our overall streaming strategy, which is focused on providing viewers the easiest and fastest ways to watch their most trusted local news and programming,” FOX Television Stations (FTS) SVP Jeff Zellmer said.
The FOX Local streaming app is compatible with major streaming players like Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, and Android TV devices. More streaming platforms will be available soon. In addition to news and weather relevant to their local market, users can see national programming from “LiveNOW from FOX,” FOX Soul, and FOX Weather on the service as well.
The rollout of the FOX Local app marks yet another expansion in the reach of the 17 FOX Television Stations channels around the United States. In April, FOX announced a deal with Amazon to distribute each of these stations as free ad-supported TV (FAST) channels.
This service marks yet another small step forward in streaming’s war against broadcast TV. Despite the proliferation of cord-cutting, more than three-quarters of Americans still report watching broadcast TV every day, as it is the best way to access local news and weather. Launching a streaming service that provides this content gives users one less reason to use broadcast or cable channels going forward.
FOX Local also shows the limitations major networks are dealing with as they try to meet cord-cutters where they are. FOX can put these channels on FOX Local because it owns them outright, but the vast majority of local news channels in the country are network affiliates that are owned by broadcasting companies like Gray, Nexstar, Sinclair, etc. Reaching deals with these providers to offer their channels via free streaming platforms will be tough because they make so much money from traditional TV advertising deals.
Check out a full list of FTS-owned channels available now on FOX Local, and channels being added to the service in the coming months.
| Market | Station | Local Channel Number | Available on FOX Local Now? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta, GA | WAGA-TV | 5 | Yes |
| Austin, TX | KTBC | 7 | No, coming this summer |
| Chicago, IL | WFLD | 32 | No, coming this summer |
| Dallas–Fort Worth, TX | KDFW | 4 | No, coming this summer |
| Detroit, MI | WJBK | 2 | Yes |
| Houston, TX | KRIV | 26 | No, coming this summer |
| Los Angeles, CA | KTTV | 11 | No, coming this summer |
| Milwaukee, WI | WITI | 6 | No, coming this summer |
| Minneapolis–St. Paul, MN | KMSP-TV | 9 | No, coming this summer |
| New York, NY | WNYW | 5 | No, coming this summer |
| Oakland–San Jose–San Francisco, CA | KTVU | 2 | No, coming this summer |
| Orlando–Daytona Beach, FL | WOFL | 35 | No, coming this summer |
| Philadelphia, PA | WTXF-TV | 29 | No, coming this summer |
| Phoenix, AZ | KSAZ-TV | 10 | No, coming this summer |
| Tacoma–Seattle, WA | KCPQ | 13 | No, coming this summer |
| Tampa–St. Petersburg, FL | WTVT | 13 | No, coming this summer |
| Washington, D.C. | WTTG | 5 | Yes |
Fox Local
FOX LOCAL is an ad-supported video streaming service for news, top stories, local and national coverage. The service presently offers local news from Detroit, Atlanta, and Washington, D.C. It will soon expand to include Austin, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis-St.Paul, Milwaukee, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Francisco, Seattle, and Tampa.