 | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Media |
| Founded | November 7, 2023; 2 years ago (2023-11-07) |
| Founder | Jonathan Katz |
| Headquarters | Atlanta, Georgia , |
Key people | Jonathan Katz (President/CEO) |
| Products | Television networks |
| Brands |
|
| Parent | Versant |
| Website | freetvnetworks |
Free TV Networks, LLC is an American broadcasting company. Owned byVersant, it operatesdigital multicast andfree ad-supported streaming television (FAST) networks.
The company was founded by Jonathan Katz, who had previously runKatz Broadcasting prior to its sale to theE. W. Scripps Company in 2017.
In November 2023, Jonathan Katz—who had ownedKatz Broadcasting prior to its sale to theE. W. Scripps Company in 2017—announced a new venture known as Free TV Networks, which would similarly operatedigital multicast television networks, as well asfree ad-supported streaming television (FAST) services. The new company planned to launch two networks on January 1, 2024, including The365—which would focus on programming targeting African Americans, and Outlaw—which would broadcastWesterns. The new company reached agreements withLionsgate andWarner Bros. Discovery to provide content, andGray Media to provide an initial affiliation base serving at least 80% of the country at launch.[1]
Among the new company's initial board members were boxing promoterAl Haymon and civil rights activistMartin Luther King III, who were both among the original investors in Katz'sBounce TV.[2][1]
In April 2024, Free TV Networks announced a third network known as Dare, a joint venture withA+E Networks that would feature unscripted programming from its library.[3] On July 1, 2024, the network launched asDefy, after Scripps Networks discontinued its version of the channel (which had also carried A+E Networks programming, and was replaced byIon Plus) and Free TV Networks assumed rights to the branding.[4][5] Defy returned to selectedIon Media stations in July 2025 as part of an affiliation agreement with Scripps.[6]
On March 1, 2025, Free TV launched a fourth network, Busted, devoted to reality and "caught on camera"-basedtrue crime programs following law enforcement.[7] In December 2025,Versant—a then-upcoming spin-off ofComcast—announced that it would acquire Free TV Networks.[8] The acquisition was completed in January 2026, with Free TV Networks becoming a business unit within Versant, and Katz joining the company as an executive to continue managing the networks' day-to-day operations. The acquisition reestablishes an over-the-air presence for Versant after severing from Comcast, which had ownedNBC and a handful of other subchannel networks.[9]