Philo

Last modified: October 6, 2020

Philo is aimed at cord-cutters. It can completely replace the TV channel packages offered by cable TV operators. Many people know about the big on-demand video streaming services, such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video. Those services are a little like DVD rental businesses, only they stream the video over the internet instead of sending out DVDs.

While on-demand video streaming systems are usually marketed as a way to supplement the entertainment offered by cable TV companies, live TV streaming services, like Philo are intended to replace those cable packages.

Philo has some very interesting features and it has attracted some big corporate backers. However, the TV service still has very few customers. Despite its small membership, the business buzz about Philo shows that the big money is betting that this streaming service is going to grow to be an industry leader.

Philo overview

Philo was originally called Tivli. Two Harvard students decided to rig up a homemade satellite dish and transmit the received TV channels to their dorm room TVs over wifi. Other study buddies wanted the service and before long, the whole dorm was getting the satellite TV package.

On leaving university, the two founders kept the system going and started up an income-generating subscription service. The TV system continued to grow thanks to capital injections by some venture capitalists. The service expanded by sticking to the market of university dorms. The company changed its name to Philo in 2013 and expanded beyond university campuses to offer streaming services to the general public in 2017. This live TV service is still relatively new and has a very small subscriber base.

Philo has just 50,000 subscribers. By comparison, the largest live TV streaming service in the United States, Hulu + Livre TV has 3,3 million subscribers. The other big competitors in live TV streaming services are Sling TV, YouTubeTV, AT&T TV Now, and fuboTV. All of these have much larger customer bases than Philo. However, Philo is sufficiently promising to have attracted investment from AMC, HBO, and Viacom.

The live TV streaming market itself is tiny in comparison to the on-demand video streaming services where Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and HBO dominate the market.

See the full review of Philo here.

What TV channels are included with Philo?

Like its bigger rivals, Philo has put together a TV channel package that mimics the entertainment plans offered by cable TV companies. Philo aims for a young audience that doesn’t have much money, so it makes great efforts to try to keep its prices low.

One of the tactics Philo uses to achieve that is that it doesn’t include the big four TV channels – ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox or any of their affiliated local channels. This is not necessarily a detraction because those channels are broadcast over the air and can legally be picked up for free with an antenna.

Philo keeps its offer simple. It has only one base plan and very few add-on packages. Here are some of the channels in the standard 59 TV channel package.

News channels included with Philo

BBC World News
Cheddar News

Sports channels included with Philo

MotorTrend

Children’s TV channels included with Philo

Nickelodeon
Nicktoons
TeenNick

Add-on packages with Philo

Epix
Starz

Philo devices

Philo is only transmitted over the internet so all of its customers must have an active internet connection in order to receive the service. Each account is entitled to three simultaneous streams.

These devices can receive Philo are:

Smart TVs

None

Streaming devices

Web browser
Google Chromecast
Roku
Apple TV
Android TV box
Amazon Fire TV Stick
Amazon Fire TV Cube

Mobile devices

PhiloTV app for iOS (iPhones and iPads)

Philo includes a cloud DVR service with unlimited DVR storage. However, videos expire from storage after 30 days. It is only possible to record an entire series and not individual episodes. A nice feature of the DVR system is that you can press record at any point in a show and the DVR will record it from the beginning.

All of the shows and movies that air on Philo are made available for on-demand catchup viewing for three days.

Philo price

The single package with a channel lineup of 59 channels costs $20 per month. The Epix add-on casts $5 per month and the Starz add-on costs $9 per month.

Contract conditions

Philo does not impose a contract, so there is no minimum service period and no early termination fee. Subscribers do not have to rent special equipment in order to watch Philo and there is no installation fee, deposit requirement, admin fee, or credit check in order to get the service. Those who want to pause the service can do and then recommence later without having to pay a reconnection fee.

How to cancel Philo

To cancel Philo:

Surf to the Philo.com website and sign in.
Go to your Account page.
Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on Cancel.

You don’t have to wait until the very end of the period you have paid for because canceling the account just stops the payment from be reapplied for the next period. So, you can keep accessing the Philo channels until the period you paid for runs out.

Philo deals

Philo keeps its prices low and so doesn’t have much room in its pricing for special deals.

Free trial

The procedure to get a seven-day free trial from Philo is a little odd but it is actually a much more laid-back free trial than the offers of other live TV streaming services because you don’t have to give your credit card details in order to start the trial.

The fact that you don’t enter your credit card means you can’t be caught out by the service automatically charging your card if you forget to cancel the service before the free trial ends. You need to give your cell phone number in order to access the free trial. It5 has to be a valid number because they will text you an access code in order to start the trial running.