iflix — the on-demand service established in 2014 and has spread throughout Southeast Asia, Middle East and North Africa — was among the first on-demand services I got introduced to (the other ones would be HOOQ and Netflix).
I still remember during the ToyCon 2015 launch when I had the opportunity to ask the iflix guys if they will include anime and other Japanese content — they were hopeful to show them.
Fast forward August 2015, they closed a deal with Aniplus Asia to show 21 titles, and at this time I rallied for Offline Viewing, a feature which will enable me to watch without any required data connection given that I download the stuff beforehand. Also during this time, HOOQ also secured an anime deal also with Aniplus. I was able to finish the first THE iDOLM@STER anime series as well as Puchim@s on iflix.
Things have winded down with Aniplus’ entry on Philippine Cable TV through SKYcable; and through Solar Entertainment’s easyTV platform and distribution to minor cable networks. HOOQ doesn’t offer anime anymore.
iflix still has an anime lineup this 2018, with some titles expiring soon:
- ACCA: 13-Territory Inspection Department
- Akame ga Kill!
- All Out!!
- Ao Haru Ride
- Bakuten Shoot Beyblade G Revolution
- Black Bullet
- Black Butler: Book Of Circus (expiring soon)
- Black Butler: Book Of Murder (expiring soon)
- Blast of Tempest
- Blue Exorcist
- Charlotte
- Shokugeki no Soma (both seasons)
- Kumamiko
- Haikyu!!
- Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls From A Dungeon?
- Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls From A Dungeon? OVA
- Kiznaiver
- Konosuba! (First season)
- Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid
- Mob Psycho 100
- My Hero Acadamia
- Snow White with the Red Hair
- Ushio & Tora
- Utawarerumono: The False Faces
- Your Lie in April
If you want to watch these series, go get a VIP membership for as low as Php99 a month.
On another note, if you look at the story I filed on Rappler about GMA Network’s foray into on-demand viewing, you can feel that three years ago, streaming video on demand (SVOD) was hyped.