Amazon's Fire TV platform is rolling out its own free TV streaming hub to compete with the popular Roku Channel's collection of popular free TV shows and movies

Today, Amazon introduced a dedicated tab titled "Free" that allows users to browse 20,000 titles from apps including Pluto TV, Tubi TV, Crackle, The CW, and Twitch The "Free" tab is located on Fire TV's easily accessed from the main navigation menu and features featured partners such as IMDB TV and Amazon News, curated collections, personalized recommendations, and trending movies and shows

Demand for streaming (and free streaming) has skyrocketed as more people stay home during a pandemic Amazon clearly saw the popularity of the Roku channel, an attractive addition to the Roku streaming device, and sought its own distribution destination: the Amazon Fire TV, as well as the Amazon Fire TV Cube, Fire TV Stick, and Fire TV Stick 4K, It is compatible with a variety of TVs

"The new Free tab provides customers with a single destination to a hand-picked selection of thousands of free movies, TV shows, news, and more," wrote Michael Polin, senior product marketing manager, in a blog post announcing the announcement

The browsing experience in the Free tab begins with a "featured apps" row and proceeds to curated thematic sections There is a row of content available for free to all Amazon Prime members, as well as a row dedicated to kids' shows and family movies This tab also shows unlocked content from other streaming services, including Netflix, Hulu, and Disney Plus

The new Amazon Fire TV Free tab goes live today