How will corporation tax change under Making Tax Digital?

As part of ‘Making Tax Digital’, an initiative to make tax administration more effective, the UK government is opening a consultation for the design of a digital platform for filing corporation tax

Social Impact: Embedding social impact into the heart of business

By partnering with social enterprises, businesses can accelerate growth and ensure their operations include a positive humanitarian and environmental impact

Climate change: Managing the ‘Green Line’ to address climate action

Traditionally, the top and bottom lines of a business are its most important metrics. But companies need to start treating their “green line” – the measurement of their environmental efforts – with just as much importance

The circular economy: Enabling the transformation to circular business

The circular economy could unlock $4.5trn in economic growth. To capture this growth, transparency and collaboration within business are crucial

Amazon’s IMDb launches ad-supported streaming service

Amazon-owned online movie database IMDb has entered the highly competitive streaming market with the launch of IMDb Freedive, a free, ad-supported video platform

IMDb's new ad-supported streaming service, IMDb Freedive, will be accessible on its website via a personal computer or laptop, as well as through Amazon Fire TV devices

Amazon subsidiary IMDb has launched a free, ad-supported streaming service, IMDb Freedive, in the US. Available content, which will not require a subscription, consists of 130 movies and 29 TV shows, with additional titles planned as the platform expands. Hit TV shows Fringe, Heroes and The Bachelor, as well as Hollywood favourites Awakenings, Foxcatcher, Memento, True Romance and Run Lola Run, are all currently available to stream.

The service will rival American companies Vudu and Roku, both of which already provide ad-supported video on demand. The market is growing ever more competitive; at present, most of the leading streaming services are subscription based, but a number of smaller competitors are choosing to take a different approach.

The IMDb Freedive platform will rival American companies Vudu and Roku, both of which already provide ad-supported video on demand

Freedive will be accessible on IMDb’s website via a personal computer or laptop, as well as through Amazon Fire TV devices. IMDb’s X-Ray feature, which provides in-depth details about the cast, crew and music of a selected title, will also be available as part of the service.

“Customers already rely on IMDb to discover movies and TV shows, and decide what to watch,” said Col Needham, founder and CEO of IMDb. “With the launch of IMDb Freedive, they can now also watch full-length movies and TV shows on IMDb and all Amazon Fire TV devices for free. We will continue to enhance IMDb Freedive based on customer feedback and will soon make it available more widely, including on IMDb’s leading mobile apps.”

The development should help IMDb’s parent company, Amazon, generate more ad-driven revenue – an area in which the company has experienced impressive growth of late, recently ascending to third place in the US rankings behind Google and Facebook. The global TV ad market is estimated to be worth some $210bn, with digital video providing a gateway into the lucrative sector.