Every year, millions of books, games, TV shows and other items are given away for free. There are now more ways than ever for savvy consumers to get their hands on the things they want without having to put their hands in their pockets.

With Amazon's Kindle, customers have access to more free books that it is possible to read in a lifetime, but you don't need to actually own a Kindle – they are also available for free to download to a PC or iPhone. This includes classics by the likes of Charles Dickens, Jane Austen and Oscar Wilde, alongside new books that cover every genre imaginable. These ebooks are given away for free to lure customers onto the platform, in the hope they will later buy paid-for books.

Music streaming site Spotify has millions of songs available. You can pick from an enormous database on Spotify Free, but you will have to put up with an advert every couple of songs. Spotify also offers paid versions costing £4.99 a month and £9.99 a month if you don't want any ads.

Most people are already aware that the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 offer their own free services that let you catch up on the week's TV. Channel 4 has taken this a step further with hundreds of free pieces of content on its YouTube channel, from the best bits of Father Ted to TV episodes of shows such as Big Brother and The IT Crowd. Content you would normally have to buy on DVD can now be watched for free.

Even software can be downloaded for free. OpenOffice, for example, offers similar functionality to Microsoft Office. Likewise, GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) is a free image manipulation program that works like Adobe Photoshop but without the big price tag.

Then there are video games, with free apps on the iPhone and free online games playable via Facebook. As of last month, PC users have been able to download and play Sony's popular DC Universe Online game – where players fight alongside DC Comics icons such as Batman and Superman (pictured right) – for free. But, as you would expect, there are also paid-for options available offering "premium access to game content". The geek.com website reported that as a result of the change (you previously had to pay), daily revenue for the game leapt 700%, while the number of players soared and was continuing to grow at a rate of 6% per day. Other popular "freemium" games include FarmVille and CityVille.

All this represents a significant shift away from illegal file-sharing sites – we can get content for free, in a way that is legal and often more user-friendly.

All these examples are digital products, which carry far fewer overheads and are easier to make for free, but there is also a growing trend towards free physical products. Every year, Ben & Jerry's has a Free Cone Day when, for a few hours, you can get a free scoop of ice cream at a participating store.

Meanwhile, there are brands which send their products to bloggers so that they will talk about them online. My own blog, Blagman.co.uk, was set up with a simple goal: I would review the products that companies sent me. The blog has received more than 350 complimentary products from companies seeking to gain free exposure, including Argos, L'Oreal, Ikea and Nissan.

It's an easy-to-emulate strategy, with virtuallty anyone able to start a blog in minutes, and then begin helping companies to get extra brand awareness in return for freebies. There are also customers who film YouTube videos, set records or even tell their friends about a product in order to get it without spending any money.

I call this the "unique offer" and, essentially, if you can offer a company something in return for their product – such as telling your friends about it, offering product feedback or being a mystery shopper – this can net you products without spending any money.


1. The passage tells about:

You can get free music on:

If you have a blog, you can:

The word ‘freebies’ means:

Which of the statements is true?