RunnTV launches rewind feature for FAST streaming channels

MUMBAI: Missed the scene? RunnTV now wants FAST television viewers to simply rewind life a little. RunnTV, one of India’s fastest-growing FAST (Free Ad-Supported Streaming Television) platforms, has introduced a new Time-Shift feature that allows viewers to rewind and revisit recently aired content on live FAST channels bringing a long-missing layer of flexibility to free streaming television. In doing so, the company claims to have become among the first FAST platforms globally to roll out time-shift viewing functionality for linear streaming channels.

The feature, already live across select channels on the platform, essentially recreates a DVR-style viewing experience within the FAST ecosystem, a category that has traditionally remained rigidly linear. Until now, viewers watching FAST channels largely had one rule: miss a moment, and it was gone for good.

RunnTV is attempting to change that equation.

“FAST television has seen tremendous global growth, but the viewing experience has remained largely linear,” said RunnTV founder and CEO Manish Sinha. “With our Time-Shift feature, we are bringing the flexibility of on-demand streaming to live FAST channels.”

The feature allows users to move backwards within an ongoing live stream and catch up on recently broadcast programming without exiting the channel environment effectively blending the simplicity of traditional television with the convenience audiences now expect from digital streaming.

The technology behind the feature has been developed through PlayStudio, RunnTV’s in-house FAST and OTT infrastructure platform. Beyond deploying the feature on its own service, the company also plans to license the capability to broadcasters, FAST operators and streaming platforms looking to integrate rewind functionality into their own ecosystems.

That could prove significant in a streaming landscape increasingly obsessed with user convenience and retention.

Globally, FAST television has emerged as one of the fastest-growing streaming categories, driven by audiences seeking free alternatives to subscription-heavy OTT services. Yet despite the category’s rapid expansion, most FAST platforms still mirror old-school linear television experiences.

RunnTV’s move signals how the category may now be entering its next phase, one where free streaming television becomes smarter, more interactive and less dependent on rigid schedules.

The company said more channels will adopt the Time-Shift feature in the coming months, while additional enhancements are also being explored to further merge live television with on-demand viewing behaviour.

In the race between streaming convenience and traditional television simplicity, RunnTV appears to be betting audiences no longer want to choose between the two.