Tubi now lets you build and share your own watchlists

Tubi, the free streaming service, now lets people make and share their own watchlists. It calls them Mixtapes. Anyone can watch a Mixtape without an account, so a friend's list can point you to something good without costing you anything or requiring a sign-up.

What changed

Tubi is a free, ad-supported service with live channels and on-demand video. It is owned by Fox. Its new Mixtapes feature lets users build lists from its nearly 400,000 movies and TV episodes. Each list gets a title and a description, and the maker can put the titles in any order.

There are two ways to start. You can build a list entirely on your own. Or you can describe what you are looking for and let Tubi suggest a starting point, which you can then edit, rearrange or rebuild. When the list is done, you can publish and share it or keep it to yourself.

What is already on it

Tubi's Mixtapes website already has many lists. Two examples from the announcement:

• "Millennial Memory Lane" has Cruel Intentions, The Fifth Element, Everybody Hates Chris and Degrassi: The Next Generation.
• "Bald Baddies" includes Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw and Central Intelligence.

Why Tubi is doing this

Finding something to watch is a common complaint. A Gracenote report surveyed 3,000 consumers in the US, Brazil, France, Germany, Mexico and the UK. It found that nearly 33 percent of streaming users say content and service fragmentation hurts their TV experience. Fragmentation means shows are spread across many different services.

The same survey found that 49 percent of users are willing to cancel a service if it is hard to find what to watch. Another 19 percent said they would give up on a viewing session if their search fails. Tubi has no paid subscriptions to cancel. Still, easier discovery could bring more users and more watch time, which supports the ads Tubi relies on.

How it compares

Shareable watchlists are rare among streaming services. Mubi has a similar feature, but its lists can include titles that are not on Mubi. Plex and JustWatch also let people create and share curated lists. Some services are turning to AI for recommendations. A list made by a person may appeal more to some viewers, and it can keep costs lower for Tubi.

What to do

You do not need an account to browse and watch Mixtapes. You do need one to make your own. The material does not say how lists are ranked or whether Tubi reviews them before they are shared.