Amazon Fire Tv. (Best Buy Photo)

Amazon-owned IMDb is planning to announce a free, ad-supported streaming service for Fire TV this week.

First reported by CNBC and confirmed by GeekWire, the new service comes after years of rumblings about an ad-supported streaming network, but that Amazon subsidiary IMDb is the company behind it is a bit of surprise. CNBC reports that IMDb is in talks with at least three media companies for a library of classic movies and TV shows for the service, which is expected to be announced at Advertising Week in New York City this week.

The service will be available to all Fire TV owners, and wouldn’t require a subscription to Amazon Prime or Prime Video.

An ad-supported video service would help Amazon capture an even greater slice of the advertising pie. Amazon executives recently disclosed that advertising has become a multi-billion dollar business for the tech giant.

CNBC reported that the service could support ads between shows as well as the ability to wrap ads around a video player, similar to some web experiences. It could bear some resemblance to The Roku Channel and parts of Hulu.

Like what you're reading? Subscribe to GeekWire's free newsletters to catch every headline

Job Listings on GeekWork

Find more jobs on GeekWork. Employers, post a job here.