Philo returns to its roots with new $25 plan and reinstated free trial
Philo returns to its roots with new $25 plan and reinstated free trial
In addition to offering a plan with access to four premium streamers, the new Essential plan will focus just on cable and FAST channels.
When it comes to streaming, the name of the game these days is flexibility. With the rapid expansion of genre-specific skinny bundles, every live TV streaming service is looking for ways to better meet its customers where they are, rather than trying to force everyone into the same, tired old plans. One of the best at providing a cost-friendly streaming option has long been Philo, and the service has announced new ways to save. Effective immediately, Philo is introducing a new Essential plan for just $25 per month, and it is bringing back its popular seven-day free trial.
Key Details:
- Back to basics: Philo has launched a new Essential plan for just $25 per month.
- Keep it simple: In addition to the newly renamed Bundle+ package, the Essential option will include 70+ cable channels, 120+ FAST channels, and zero premium streamers.
- Free at last: Four months after suspending its free trial, Philo is bringing it back on Essential plans.
Last fall, Philo announced that it was raising the price of its Core subscription package from $28 to $33 per month. It was the first time that the low-priced streamer had raised prices in a year and a half, and in exchange for the $5 fee bump, the service was adding free access to HBO Max and discovery+ to the plan, which already included a complementary subscription to AMC+.
Shortly after that announcement, Philo eliminated its one-week free trial, meaning that if cost-conscious consumers wanted to sample the service, they would have to pay the $33 fee. However, effective Tuesday, March 10, Philo is now offering a new Essential plan for just $25 per month. This subscription tier is essentially the old Core plan — which is now being called Bundle+ — but without the additional streaming services.
So, cord-cutters can get access to the original Philo service, including over 70 live TV channels, more than 120 free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channels, more than 80,000 on-demand titles, and unlimited DVR storage for up to a year. The Essential package is now available on Philo.com, and will roll out to third-party platforms in the coming days and weeks.
Additionally, Philo has reinstated its seven-day free trial for anyone interested in sampling the Essential plan. So, once again, you will be able to see if the mix of traditional cable channels that Philo offers fits with what you are looking for in a live TV streamer.
The Essential and Bundle+ plans join the Philo Free Channels streaming option to give “customers a clear, flexible path from free streaming to live TV to premium, all within one affordable platform.”
These package changes come less than one week after the company announced that Mike Keyserling would step into the role of Philo’s CEO. Keyserling has said that he is committed to continuing Philo’s consumer-first ethos with a focus on affordability and package flexibility.
“This is about giving customers genuine choice. Essential reflects our commitment to keeping live TV accessible and affordable, and doing it without compromise,” Keyserling said. “Bundle+ is for viewers who want more, and we’ve made it easy to upgrade at any time. Both plans reflect where we’re headed as a company: building a platform that meets customers where they are, at every stage.”
With these moves, Philo is acknowledging that it is returning to the philosophy that made it stand out from its competitors in the first place. While cable and streaming packages continued to add on more and more channels that viewers didn’t want, Philo was built around providing a budget-friendly service to a certain subset of cord-cutters. With the introduction of the Essential, Philo is showing again that simplicity and affordability — along with channels that people actually watch — are at the core of what it offers consumers.
Philo
Philo is a live TV streaming service designed for entertainment lovers, offering flexible ways to watch without the high price of traditional TV bundles. The service now features two paid plans — Essential and Bundle+ — alongside its existing free streaming offering, giving customers a range of options depending on how much live and premium content they want.