Flixtor, it’s a name everyone knows well but if you’re looking to rightly take things legal we’ve got the low-down on Flixtor alternatives for watching movies online.
If you have been looking for a way to stream and watch movies and TV shows, you will have run across several different solutions.
One of the possible solutions among them may have been Flixtor, but if you’re questioning its legality, we are about to shed some light on the topic.
The name of the service already allows you to draw certain conclusions, such as Flixtor being a streaming platform, meant to provide entertainment in the form of shows and movies.
However, Flixtor is slightly different than most other similar platforms, and today, we are going to explore the why’s and how’s.
What is Flixtor?
As mentioned, Flixtor is a trendy video streaming website, which also functions as a video search engine.
In other words, it searches the internet for the content you wish to access and allows you to watch whatever you want from one place.
Despite its popularity, however, the content available remains illegal in most regions.
A lot of the content available through it is copyright material. While this is still legal in some regions (as you are technically not downloading anything), in most, you’re likely breaking the law by using it.
5 Substitute options for Flixtor
So, if you wish to stay on the right side of the law, here are the leading alternatives to access movies and TV shows in most regions.
1) Netflix
At this point, Netflix doesn’t need any specific introduction. Everyone has heard about it, and everyone knows about it.
It is the best and most popular streaming service in the world, with thousands of shows, movies, documentaries, cartoons, anime, and whatever else you may think of.
It is available in pretty much across the entire world, apart from China and some parts of the Middle East.
It has several different payment plans, and choosing among them impacts the quality of the video that you get, as well as how many devices you can use simultaneously. New users can use it for free for one month, and after that, the subscription ($9-$16) will kick in.
But, you can watch all of the content available in your region from pretty much any device which can run browsers, or for which Netflix has a dedicated app, such as Windows, Android, iOS, Mac, and more. We’re a big fan of the ability to stream in high quality.
If you wish to expand the available content, you can do that too, by using a VPN and connecting to another region.
2) Amazon Prime
Another option is to use Amazon Prime, which is a premium streaming service offered by Amazon.
Amazon Prime offers many different shows and movies, and although they have Prime Originals, it’s to a much lesser extent than Netflix.
The service has several different plans, such as a $59 subscription for annual Student membership, or $119 for a Prime yearly membership.
You can also get a monthly subscription for around $13, while students pay around $6.49 per month. Amazon Prime also has a free trial, although your account needs a current, valid credit card linked.
There are many other benefits outside of the streaming service. These include the likes of free shipping, so if you purchase a lot through Amazon, it may just be worth getting the service because of that alone.
3) YouTube Premium
YouTube Premium emerged as an interesting part of YouTube, where you can subscribe for a paid membership and watch movies, as the name suggests.
However, there are a few downsides to it, such as lesser content. As well as the fact that it is not available in a lot of countries. Even so, you can easily unblock YouTube Premium in other countries using a VPN app.
After that, you can watch it on any device out there, as long as you can open a browser on it.
There are, of course, dedicated YouTube apps that you can get as well. In terms of pricing, movie rental and purchase rates can go anywhere from $2.99 to $19.99, but there is a selection of movies and shows included once you subscribe without further cost.
4) Disney+
If you are a Disney fan, you likely already know about Disney+. It’s a new service that is only available on trial at this point. However, it will see its full release soon, and it is a great thing for anyone who wants access to all things Disney.
The launch of the new service will allow Disney fans to get all of it on a single platform. This is even more critical considering that Disney content will be slowly disappearing from competing services such as Netflix.
In terms of pricing, Disney+ can cost you either $7 or $70, with $7 being the monthly subscription, and $70 being a year-long plan.
You will be able to save a bit yearly and get all the Disney content that you could ever want. Furthermore, due to Disney’s purchase of 21st Century Fox, Disney now also owns Hulu, meaning that you can add Disney+ to your Hulu account.
5) Hulu
Finally, there is Hulu. Hulu comes with a free trial only available for new members, which lasts for a month.
After that, you will be charged in accordance with the plan you chose. The cheapest one is $5.99 per month, and it is ad-supported, although it will give you access to Hulu’s entire library.
If you want to get rid of ads, you can choose its $11.99 plan and still get the first month free. However, if you select Hulu + Live TV, you will get one week free, and then be charged $44.99 per month.
Another thing to note is that Hulu is not available in most countries. This means that those who wish to watch it from countries not supported by the service must get a VPN first.
However, once you pay for your VPN service, you will have full access to Hulu, as well a many add-ons, HBO, Showtime, Cinemax, and Starz. As mentioned earlier, Disney+ is involved as well, although the official confirmation is still pending.
Is Flixtor illegal?
Unfortunately, in some places (most places), it is.
As you may know, streaming copyright content online is a bit of a grey area, according to most countries’ laws.
Downloading such content is illegal pretty much everywhere, but watching it on the internet known as ‘streaming’ is not always clearly established as a violation of the law.
In some countries like Switzerland, even downloading is legal for personal use, so much depends on your own country’s laws.
That means that you may end up in trouble for doing it, or you may not, depending on where you live and what your country thinks about it.
Since Flixtor does not own the materials that it provides, it would be best to ‘err on the side of caution and assume the content is illegal. Instead sticking with one of the five legal alternatives mentioned above.
Can I get free movies anywhere?
To put it quite simply – no. Not anything that’s recently released or a big-name production.
There are almost no free streaming websites that provide you with free big-name movies and most that do are illegal, and there is pretty much no question about it.
There are very few latest movies that may be streamed for free, legally. While there are one or two free movie sites, they’re usually showing obscure documentaries, niche interest films or lower quality movies.
If you are looking for any new movies, those are definitely illegal to stream or download from the internet.
It is a lot simpler and safer to pay $10-$15 per month and enjoy all the content you can handle on one of the legal streaming services.
Not to mention that most of them have a one-month free trial, so you don’t even have to pay for them right away.
In some regions, accessing legal streaming services can be difficult, which is where a VPN can help. This itself can be considered a grey area, but better to ‘unblock’ and pay for something legally than pay nothing and download illegally.
What other streaming services are illegal?
There are quite a few streaming services that you cannot use legally.
Popcorn Time is probably the most well-known app, but many other sites and apps exist including:
- Showbox
- Movierips
- Primewire
- Movie(.ag)
These should all be avoided to stay on the right side of the law.
There are also plenty of torrent sites and services that would be considered illegal.
Summary
Flixtor is considered a very convenient service for online streaming, but also one that is illegal to use in most places.
The service acts as a search engine for videos, and it doesn’t comply with the copyright laws, which is why using it may get you into trouble.
On the other hand, there are plenty of alternative legal services to stream movies, new or old. These can provide you with almost all the same content for a small monthly or yearly fee, and allow you total peace of mind.
Whichever you end up choosing remember to sit back and enjoy binging safe in the knowledge that the service you’re using is entirely legal.
