It seems like Hulu and Spotify had the right idea, when they launched a discounted package last month that combined both of their services. Now, the low-cost streaming service Philo is doing the same – but not with Spotify. Instead, Philo and Pandora are teaming up on a combo deal of their own: $16 per month for 37 Philo channels and Pandora Premium. Or, for $20 per month, you’ll get 42 channels and Pandora Premium.
Oh, but there’s a catch: Pandora Premium is only free for three months, not for the length of your subscription. Bummer.
That’s a different deal than what Hulu and Spotify are offering, and is definitely more of a promo than a partnership.
Still, it’s interesting to see others in the industry using the video/music combo bundle to sell subscriptions.
Philo is a relative newcomer to the streaming TV market.
Though the company had been around for some time, offering an on-campus internet TV service for universities, its $16 per month streaming TV service only launched this past November. (Philo can get away with the lower pricing because it ditches what makes streaming so expensive: sports.)
Instead, its core lineup includes cable networks like A&E, AMC, Animal Planet, AXS TV, BBC America, BET, Cheddar, CMT, Comedy Central, Discovery Channel, DIY, Food Network, FYI, GSN, HGTV, HISTORY, Investigation Discovery (ID), IFC, Lifetime, MTV, MTV2, Nickelodeon (+Nick Jr., Teennick), OWN, Paramount Network, Science Channel, TLC, Travel Channel, VH1, VICELAND, We, and others.
The 46-channel package adds American Heroes Network, BET Her, Cooking Channel, Destination America, Discovery Family, Discovery Life, Logo, MTV Live, and NickToons.
Philo’s service include a 30-day DVR, the ability to watch shows that aired in the past three days, and the ability to pause live TV.
Meanwhile, Pandora Premium (basically, Pandora’s Spotify competitor) is typically $9.99 per month. It usually offers a free trial, but currently that’s 60 days, not three months.
In other words, the Philo combo deal means you get a longer free trial of Pandora Premium along with your Philo subscription. Of course, Pandora’s goal is to then convert those free trial users to paid subscribers.
The move to offer a bundled three-month free trial of Pandora Premium with Philo comes shortly after rival Apple Music began extending its own three-month free trial by another month to those who hadn’t yet signed up, according to reports. And it comes just ahead of Spotify’s earnings, which investors seem optimistic about.