This month, Netflix officially became available in the Philippines along with over a 130 other countries worldwide. The service offers here tiered pricing from Php370 for SD quality and one stream, Php460 for HD quality videos up to 2 streams and Php550 per month for Ultra HD quality and up to 4 streams (maximum of 6 devices per account).
The subscriptions fees are pretty much the same as in the US with $7.99 as the starting MSF.
The entry of Netflix in the Philippines has placed a lot of pressure to existing players, especially with the likes of Hooq and iFlix. Both services are barely a year in the country and are still struggling to gain a sizable market share.
Netflix being the more widely known service became an instant favorite. Even before its official entry in the Philippines a number of subscribers already have access to Netflix by using proxies and using VPN services in order to watch movies and TV series in the US library.
A lot of people we talked to keeps on asking about the future of iFlix and Hooq in the country now that Netflix is already in play. Here are some thoughts I shared with them.
* The Netflix library in the Philippines is still considerably small with only about 7% of the US library accessible by Philippine subscribers. It will take some time for Netflix to add more titles in their catalog.
* Netflix’s monthly subscription fees are still way more expensive compared to Hooq at Php149 and iFlix at Php129.
* Hooq has the support of Globe Telecom while iFlix has the full support of PLDT and Smart. Their consolidated marketing effort will continue to attract new subscribers. These services should be able to leverage their partnership with the respective telcos to offer better or more affordable cost of access. We’ve already seen them doing it but with Netflix coming in, they’re more likely to ramp up the offerings.
* No single service has a clear advantage in terms of the library of movies and TV shows. Majority of the more popular titles are not yet available in their catalog and even the episodes of our favorite TV series are not that updated.
* Netflix has a slight disadvantage in terms of local content although they can easily compensate that with their own produced original shows.
| Netflix | iflix | HOOQ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hours of content | Over 30,000 hours of content including Netflix original titles | Over 20,000 hours of hit movies and TV series including local and Asian content | Over 30,000 hours of hit movies and TV series including titles from their local partners |
| Maximum devices per account | 6 devices | 5 devices | 5 devices |
| Simultaneous streaming on multiple devices | 1 device for Basic plan / 2 for Standard plan / 4 for Premium plan | Up to 2 devices | Up to 2 devices |
| Streaming quality | SD for Basic plan / HD for Standard / UHD for Premium | Standard Definition only | SD and HD |
| Number of downloadable content for offline viewing | Not available | Up to 10 videos | Up to 5 videos |
| App availability | Any device with Internet connection | Android, iOS, desktop, and web browser | Android, iOS, desktop, and web browser |
| Telco perks | None | Discounted price for Smart and PLDT - Php99/month | Could be paid via Globe with up to 2GB allocation |
| Free trial | 1 month | 30 days | 1 month |
| Starting price | Php370/month | Php129/month | Php149/month |
There’s no clear winner for now. Ultimately, it’s the quantity and the quality of content that will drive more interest and eventually turn them to paying subscribers. In the meantime, subscribers will just gravitate to the service that provides them with the best value for their needs.
Netflix has the experience and did well in the US but we have yet to wait if that will translate to the same results in the Philippines.
If iFlix could only offer a decent mobile apps and apps for media devices like the PS4, Apple TV, etc., then maybe they could pose a good competition for NetFlix. But that is not the case. I can’t even run their app in my iPhone and LG G2! Sad!
Iflix has very good compression. Its fast for me to download offline a movie or show, way faster than torrents. Also i dont think they only cater to the Ph market only, i see so many foreign films from nearby regions. I have had all 3 services I say iflix was the best, it wasn’t perfect but consistently good.
Netflix wasnt bad but you have to have a good speed internet like 3 mbps it buffers alot if below that. I love thier own shows, but i very much so disagree that they currently have 30,000 hours of shows and movies for our country!! No offline mode bummer…and once they start charging their high rates, i think alot of people will drop them, but they have a global thing going on and will survive.
For Hooq honestly i dont see this surviving. Netflix now has a partnership with Globe as well. Not so much tv shows!! Movies are a bit better than iflix for now in terms of quantity. They have the better partner for local content the price is not bad either.
Ang tanong, kumikita ba sila ng sapat to compete with Netflix?
Iba ang dinig ko sa mundo ng advertising at marketing.
I don’t know how many times I have to say this but iFlix has HD and infact sharper than the BD rip of YTS.
Netflix is really bad here. They have fewer movies than iFlix/Hooq and can’t play offline!! In iFlix, I usually cache my movies/episodes before driving because of our bad signal. I tried Netflix and it just keeps stopping in the middle of the show and when I play it again it doesn’t even resume!!
Agree. This has been brought to their attention yet they decide to to nothing about it.
I’m subscribed to the 3 services and out of these, Hooq has the worst quality. HD on Netflix and iFlix are on par but iFlix offers better compression (less buffering) and has offline functionality.
iFlix is now free to Smart and PLDT subscribers