I don’t know about you, but I find streaming live TV using subscription based-streaming services so much more flexible than a cable TV package. However, as good as this may sound, it is not necessarily cheaper. If you look at services like PS Vue and DirecTV Now, well, they’re a bit expensive. But you’re here for Philo TV, one of the cheapest services around. Although it costs less and offers different content than those channels, they do have one thing in common – only available in the US. Well, not after you’re done with this guide. Here’s how you can watch Philo TV anywhere outside the US.
How to Watch Philo TV Outside the US
The Present of Tivli – Philo
Tivli was founded back in 2009 by Nicholas Krasney and Tuan Ho (Harvard seniors). It saw the light because Harvard University did not offer cable TV services for students. In other words, a way to circumvent the issue. A few weeks after the launch, half of the students residing on campus registered for the service.
Now, it’s known as Philo, an online streaming platform that focuses on “Lifestyle” networks. It provides you with a handful of channels that you’d normally get through cable (at a much lower price). As time went by, the service has become very popular among US viewers gaining over 50,000 subscribers.
But Philo is not for everyone. There are a couple of essential factors to make a streaming service compete in the industry, and it might lack those. The channel targets a specific audience, and in case you still can’t wrap your head around it, let’s take a look at Philo’s features.
Pricing and Channels
The service is the result of a collaboration between broadcasting giants. We’re talking about Viacom, Scrips, AMC, A+E, and Discovery. It’s super cheap compared to other streaming services out there.
Unlike PS Vue, Sling TV, and Hulu Live, which offer a bunch of different channels and add-ons, Philo grants you one subscription plan and that’s it. Not to mention that you wouldn’t find any sports or premium channels in its catalog. That means forget about ESPN, HBO or CINEMAX.
But again, Philo is dead cheap. For only $20/month, you can tap into 50 channels in the United States. Let me give you some examples:
- A&E
- AMC
- BBC America
- BET
- CMT
- Comedy Central
- Discovery
- Food Network
- HGTV
- IFC
- LifeTime
- MTV
- Spike
- Sundance TV
- Nick Jr
- History
- TLC
- TV Land
- VH1
- Viceland
You subscription will start after a 7-day free trial. The service won’t ask for your credit card information until the trial ends. All you need to do is sumbit your mobile number and you can start taking the channel for a test drive.
Streaming Philo – The Range of Device Compatibility
It’s not a comparing guide, but some things are worth mentioning. Philo doesn’t cover as many devices as Sling TV, but it is compatible with popular ones, including:
- Amazon Fire TV
- Apple TV
- Android TV
- Roku
- Google Chromecast
- iPhone
- iPad
- PC
- Mac
- Android
Having decent device compatibility comes in handy when we speak of Philo. That’s mainly because it allows up to three simultaneous streams, which means that you and two other members can benefit from streaming its content using the same account.
Who Can Watch Philo?
Unfortunately, only those residing in the United States can stream the channel’s content. As I mentioned before, Philo only works within US borders, which means viewers that have a US IP address are the only ones who can access the service.
If you’re living abroad, you’ll be holding a foreign IP address, which will get you blocked on the spot. Oh, by the way, if you submit a phone number from outside the US, that won’t work as well. Once you approach the channel from abroad, this geo-error message will pop up (even if you have a subscription and happen to be overseas):
“Sorry, Philo is only available in the United States …for now.”
On the bright side, there’s a workaround you can use to circumvent the geo-restrictions imposed on the channel’s content. We’ll be talking about that next.
Philo Goes Global – The Best Solution
If you’re looking to bypass regional restrictions and also unblock geo-blocked sites, even when you are living abroad, you need to use a VPN service. A Virtual Private Network is a security tool that most companies use to send data without having to worry about it being intercepted and harvested. It reroutes your internet traffic through a private tunnel encrypting it in the process.
Once the connection is established, the VPN increases your privacy by replacing your initial IP address with one from the VPN provider. As for bypassing restrictions, you can obtain an IP address from a specific gateway city based on the server you choose to connect to. In Philo’s case, the US is your destination.
Connect to a US server, obtain a US IP address, and you can stream Philo no matter where you are on the map. To sum it up, here’s what you need to do to get Philo TV in your region:
- Your first step would be signing up for a VPN service provider that offers many servers in the US. My recommendation would be ExpressVPN as it has 34 of those.
- You’ll need their application to navigate easier. Find that on their website or your native App Store.
- Once you download and install the VPN app, connect to an American server.
- Now, this may take a few seconds. When the VPN provider says “Connected”, use this IP checker to see if you got the new IP address.
- Finally, launch Philo and stream its content anywhere you may be.
Why ExpressVPN Though?
Well, Philo is based in the United States, which means you’ll have to be looking for servers in that area. Luckily, ExpressVPN has around 34 blazing fast servers in the country. You’ll not just be unblocking Philo, but also other streaming services like HBO Now, US Netflix, CW TV, PS Vue, and so many more.
ExpressVPN has been around for quite some time now. It has grown a lot, providing the best service in the industry in terms of speed, security, simplicity, compatibility, and customer support. It’s well-suited for those who wish to unblock content in the United States and other countries as it has a whopping 3000-server network in 94 countries.
In terms of privacy, ExpressVPN respects that and offers users the chance to pay using anonymous methods, including Bitcoin. That’s not all; it doesn’t keep logs of your browsing activities. That means if your government came snooping around, it’d find nothing to harvest. Other features include a Kill Switch (if the VPN connection took a sudden drop), DNS/WebRTC leak, and split tunneling.
As for streaming, you can always rely on their Smart DNS feature (MediaStreamer). You get full speed with full access to your local channels at the same time as it doesn’t encrypt your data nor does it change your IP. However, you’ll be losing that extra layer of protection a VPN encryption provides. But if you’re just into streaming, it can be the perfect alternative.
The only negative comment I have on ExpressVPN is that it’s much more expensive than its competitors. Alright, I get it, you get what you pay for, but still, price is a critical factor when considering a VPN provider. In case you don’t like what this VPN has to offer, you can ask for a refund within 30 days. After that, you can check other top VPNs for Philo in the table below.
- 30-Day Money-back Guarantee
- Unlimited Bandwidth
- Apps For All Your Devices
- 24/7 Live Support
What Content Does Philo Provide?
Alright, so I gave you a look at the channels included in a Philo subscription. But what about what you’ll be getting in terms of content? I got you covered in that territory as well. Here’s what you get when you subscribe to Philo:
- Killing Eve
- Fixer Upper
- Super 8
- Spaceball
- Airplane
- Doctor Who
- Preacher
- The Middle
- Cheers
- Surviving Evil
- Dead Silent
- Dr. Phil
- Family Feud
- Beerland
- Martin
- South Park
Philo TV Anywhere – Logging Off
A lot of streaming services promise to offer a wide variety of shows or networks. However, a few of them cost as little as Philo does. The channel is probably the cheapest in the United States. However, only those residing in America can access the channel.
But now, you can do so as well. Just sign up with a VPN provider, connect to an American server, and Philo becomes accessible in your region. In case you have any questions, make sure to contact me in the comment section below. I’ll be more than happy to help you out.
