Wallet-friendly streaming television service Philo has added two new executives to its roster as the company continues to scale its operations by chasing price-conscious consumers.
Tom Tidgwell is joining the company as its Chief Financial Officer, moving from advertising technology company Madhive, where he served in the same role for nearly five years. Joining him is Laura Dechant, who has been named to the role of Chief Operating Officer; for Dechant, the role is a promotion after she served as the Head of Customer Support before becoming Philo’s Head of Business Operations.
In statements sent to The Desk by e-mail, Philo CEO Mike Keyserling praised Tidgwell and Dechant as executives who were well-deserving of their new positions, having committed themselves to the TV industry for years.
“Tom brings exactly the kind of financial leadership and strategic depth that Philo needs at this stage of our evolution: He has spent his career at the intersection of finance, corporate development, and media, scaling organizations, leading major transactions, and building the kinds of relationships that will serve us well as we grow,” Keyserling wrote. “I look forward to having Tom as a thought partner, and I know his experience will give us a sharper lens on where to invest as we continue to build toward what comes next for Philo.”
Tidgwell said his role as Chief Financial Officer is one that will see him serve as a strategic thought partner to Keyserling.
“I’ve spent my career at the intersection of finance, strategy, and media, building companies and finding ways to grow them efficiently, and I believe the best is still ahead for this business,” Tidgwell said. “I’m a builder at heart, and I’m excited to bring that experience to this team. My job is to help make sure we’re investing in the right places, building the right partnerships, and positioning Philo for long-term success.”
Dechant’s promotion to Chief Operating Officer is “a recognition of what she has already built at Philo — she has spent over a decade developing a rare and deep understanding of this company, from the systems that power our business to how our people work together to get things done,” Keyserling said.
He continued: “As COO, she will take that expertise and apply it at an even greater scale, continuing to lead the AI integration work already underway and driving it further and faster. I believe that work will define how great companies at our size operate going forward.”
Dechant said her tenure at Philo has helped her “understand how every layer of this organization functions, what drives it forward and what gets in the way.”
“Since we’re already a lean team that punches above its weight, my goal as COO is straightforward: make us more agile, operationalize our data, and make handoffs between teams seamless,” Dechant said, adding that she intends to look for ways that artificial intelligence tools and platforms can help boost productivity and output across the board, rather than as a way to cut costs and save money.
“Philo works because of how well this team executes, and my job is to make sure we keep raising that bar,” Dechant said. “We’re already doing this, and I’m excited to drive it further.”
The executive appointments comes one month after Philo’s long-time CEO Andrew McCollum stepped away from the role to become the company’s Executive Chairman. Keyserling was named Philo’s new CEO after McCollum transitioned out.
Philo offers more than 70 premium entertainment, lifestyle and knowledge networks from investor-owners like Paramount, A+E Global Media, AMC Global Media and Warner Bros Discovery, plus other programmers like Urban One, Weigel Broadcasting and Revry, for $25 per month. A bundle that includes those premium networks with access to ad-supported programming from streaming services AMC Plus, HBO Max and Discovery Plus is also available for $33 per month.
Philo also offers more than 100 free, ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channels through a subscription-free version of its platform, which includes FAST channels programmed by its investor-owners and others like MSG Networks, Overtime, Lionsgate, Fremantle Media, BeIN Sports, Nosey and Kevin Hart’s Laugh Out Loud Network. Philo’s FAST channel portfolio is integrated into its subscription offering as well.
The service is widely supported on streaming TV platforms, including Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Vizio, Samsung, LG, Apple TV and Android TV (Google TV), as well as most popular smartphones and tablets.
