Updated July 2020!

When you cut the cord with cable and you are looking for alternative media sources, both paid and free Kodi add-ons and IPTV services, which offer virtually limitless entertainment, seem tempting.

But these services very often fail to live up to their promise, and so are not always worth the risk.

You will no doubt have seen marketing headlines like:

“Experience unlimited entertainment…”

“All the premium channels”

“Hundreds of live sports channels”

“Full HD every time!”

“Access every single PPV event!”

The peddlers of these Kodi add-ons make it sound simple to gain access to all the movies, shows, sports, and pay-per-view events that you could possibly want at a fraction of the cost you would pay on cable.

But, when something sounds too good to be true, it is, usually because it is too good.

Nothing about these Kodi add-ons is simple. And, if you choose the wrong add-on, you can also put yourself at significant risk.

I’m going to tell you everything those Kodi peddlers don’t want you to know about the IPTV add-ons.

What Are Kodi IPTV Add-Ons?

But, before we start, let’s be clear what we are talking about.

Kodi add-ons are just like Android applications. They are programs of applications that you can install within Kodi. They can do almost anything, and they may be paid for or free.

Kodi IPTV add-ons are add-ons that allow you to stream live TV or films. IPTV simply means Internet Protocol Television and refers to any television that is delivered online rather than via traditional means.

BUT! In general, in the Kodi community, when people are talking about IPTV add-ons, they are talking about services that provide broad access to a variety of TV channels, movies, and PPV events you would normally expect to pay a fortune for, but at a fraction of the cost.

There are free Kodi IPTV add-ons out there, but there are also a lot of paid-for services.

Also Read: Why use a VPN for Android TV boxes?

Many people in the Kodi community think that access to information and entertainment should be free, and therefore, they aren’t fans of paid-for Kodi IPTV add-ons. But, not all Kodi IPTV add-ons are evil.

That statement is not going to make me very popular with many people in the Kodi community or even the open-source community.

But it’s a reality of life today. Everyone is in the business of selling something, and I see no problems charging money for your expertise or services…as long as it is fair and provides good value for the money.

A good IPTV paid add-on or service is something that gives you extra functionality you wouldn’t have otherwise.

For example, if a hardware manufacturer like Logitech or HDHomerun created a premium add-on for use with some of their devices to give you extra benefits, I don’t see any problem with them charging a reasonable amount for that.

On the Plex side of things, each of the Plex player apps has a nominal charge to it, unless you’re a member of Plex Pass.

All of that is OK.

What I get fired-up about is when the sellers misrepresent the value to the end-user. Many will over-promise based on things they simply cannot control. Worse yet, they may put the customer at risk. That is pure evil.

So, what I’m going to talk about here is specifically those paid Kodi/XBMC add-ons and “premium IPTV subscriptions” that offer to give you access to stuff you would normally have to shell out a lot of money for.

So, what’s the problem?

Here are five things they don’t want you to know about their paid Kodi add-ons and IPTV subscriptions. But I’m not just going to tell you what they don’t want you to know.

I am also going to tell you why you should care. 

1. It’s Not Easy To Set Up

Think for a second how easy it is to use your television when you have cable TV.

1. Turn on TV
2. (optional) Press the Guide button to find a real-time description of what is available to watch
3. Enter channel number or scroll through the available channels until you find what you want

For the past eighty years, television has been pretty easy to use. I mean, the worst we’ve had to put up with has been fixing the “rabbit ears” to get the right signal or running up to the TV to change the channel by hand.

Using these paid services isn’t easy, and they’re certainly not “set it and forget it.”

Even setting up your cable TV isn’t difficult. Someone comes to your house to install it for you. They are famous for their crappy customer service, but once you have it installed, it generally works without an issue unless there’s an outage affecting your entire area.

Remember the three-step setup process above? Simple, right?

Now think about paid Kodi add-ons.

Because of their nature, many Kodi add-ons aren’t going to be in the official Kodi repository. What this means for you is that you’ll need to install them manually.

If you’re a techie, this isn’t a big deal. Admittedly, there are hundreds of YouTube videos telling you how to install the Kodi flavor-of-the-day add-on. The paid add-ons are no exception.

But if you’re not a techie, this can be pretty daunting.

Let’s take a look at the installation process of one of the more popular Kodi add-ons: Exodus. This isn’t a paid add-on, but it will illustrate just how complicated the installation can be if you’re not used to it.

1. Turn on your TV and Android Box
2. Launch Kodi
3. Select System and then File Manager
4. Select Add Source
5. Select None
6. Enter the following repository exactly: http://fusion.tvaddons.ag
7. Click Done
8. Enter a name for the media source.
9. Go back to the Kodi home screen
10. Select System
11. Select Add-Ons
12. Select Install from zip file
13. Select whatever you named your media source back in step 8
14. Select Kodi-repos
15. Select your language
16. Select repository.exodus-x.x.x.zip
17. Wait for the system to enable the add-on
18. Select Install from repository
19. Select *Exodus Repository*
20. Select Video Add-Ons
21. Select Exodus
22. Select Install
23. Wait for the system to enable the add-on

Are you tired yet?

Is this hard? No. Not if you know what you’re doing.

Is it cumbersome? Absolutely!

2. It’s Not Easy To Use

Even if you have something that will set it up for you, you’re not off the hook. You still have more work to do every time you want to watch TV.

They’re certainly not “set and forget.”

Channel surfing has become the norm. If you want to watch something, you just flipped through the stations until you found what you were looking for. Or better yet, you went to your Channel Guide, which told you exactly what was on every single channel.

Not so in the Kodi world.

It’s funny to me that the same people who complain about having to open a different (official) app to watch different content are the same ones that swear by these complicated add-ons.

Why do I say that?

Think about this. When you turn on your TV, how many options do you have to watch the same show?

One, right?

Take a look at how many different streams there are for these sporting events. Some of them may work. Some may not. Some may be better quality. Some may be garbage.

Do you really want to spend your TV time looking for something that works and actually looks good?

So Why Should You Care?

If you’re not a techie, or just don’t want to put the effort into constantly tweaking your setup…if you just want it to be simple and easy, then you might want to look at other options.

The bottom line is that watching TV with a paid Kodi add-on or a sketchy IPTV subscription service takes a lot of work.

3. They’re Almost Always Illegal

Stay With Me Here, Because This Isn’t Going Where You Think It Is.

This isn’t about me taking some “moral high ground.” This is about your privacy, security, and how much you’re willing to risk them.

The fact of the matter is that streaming content that you don’t own is illegal or will become illegal in the very near future. Piracy will always be around, of course. It’s been around for hundreds of years in one form or another and will continue to be for hundreds more. More on this in my article that looks at Is Kodi Legal?

What’s different now is that it’s becoming easier and easier for the authorities to track who is participating in it.

The UK’s Digital Economy Act (see link above) doesn’t directly go after the people streaming the content; it goes after the people providing the content. Once the news of possible fines and imprisonment spread, multiple streaming sites voluntarily shut down. Even Navi X, one of the longest running Kodi add-ons, closed its doors forever. See more shutdowns here, here, here, and here.

According to TorrentFreak.com, the Navi-X team “says that the main reason for discontinuing the add-on and its underlying service is the current legal climate. Hosting Navi-X playlists is something that TV Add-ons no longer feels comfortable with due to the potential liability that comes with it.”

So what, you say? With this flurry of activity, what does this mean for you?

End-users of pirate streaming sites could be in legal trouble themselves. You may remember Popcorn Time? Several of their end-users were sued by the filmmakers for damages up to $150,000. Recently, a British university student was caught torrenting a movie and faced retribution from her school.

Even if you personally take precautions to keep yourself safe, it may not matter. Several fully loaded Kodi box sellers have been jailed in the UK, recently.

Tell me…what do you think happens to their customer records when they get arrested?

The names and addresses of all of those people who purchased those devices are now in the hands of the police. This means that those people can now be easily observed for pirating content themselves.

Easiest. Investigation. Ever.

Why Should You Care?

Make no mistake: you are the one at risk if you use an illegal service. If you do so, use an anonymous form of payment, like Bitcoin, and I recommend using a VPN for Kodi. But just understand, if Big Brother wants to find you, they will. No defense is foolproof.

4. They Can Take Your Money And Run

But wait…there’s more!

Because most of these paid Kodi add-ons and IPTV subscription services are illegal (or legally grey), there’s even more risk.

Our friends over at KillTheCableBill.com have a huge list of IPTV Scams that they’ve uncovered over the past few years. And the list is only growing.

You see, it’s easy for someone to set up a paid IPTV subscription service and charge for access to their servers.

But what happens when they get more attention than they bargained for and they decide to close up shop?

If you paid by credit card, which puts you at risk (see point #3 above), then you can try to charge-back the purchase. If you paid by Bitcoin or some other secure method of payment, don’t hold your breath on getting a refund.

These services were on shaky legal ground to begin with, which means you have absolutely no recourse when things go wrong.

You see, there’s something called the Clean Hands Doctrine, which basically says that if you’re engaging in illegal activity, you can’t reasonably expect someone to act within the bounds of the law. Basically, if you tried to sue someone who steals the money you paid them to get illegal access to premium channels and PPV events, then your case will be thrown out of court.

Why Should You Care?

If you do decide to go with a paid Kodi add-on or IPTV subscription, go with a month-to-month plan using a secure method of payment like Bitcoin. That way it will limit your exposure if they decide to go belly-up.

5. All Those SD Streams Are Going To Look Like Crap.

You bought a 4K TV, right? If not, you’ve at least got a 1080p HD TV?

So, why are you satisfied with Standard Definition (SD) streams?

Many of the streams you’ll see on these IPTV services are in SD, which is around 480p. (Side note: Technically this is “enhanced definition,” not “standard definition”, but the term “enhanced definition” has gone away over the past few years).

Simply put: You’re not getting your money’s worth out of that TV if you’re using it to play crappy streams at low resolution.

Why Should You Care?

You bought your TV for a reason. You were impressed by those attention-grabbing video loops that were playing on it at the store.

So, why are you satisfied using only a fraction of its potential?

What To Use Instead?

This discussion may have left you wondering why you should use Kodi at all? Kodi is still an excellent piece of software for organizing and streaming media content, and there are hundreds of excellent add-ons for Kodi that can help you access the entertainment you are looking for.

I am simply suggesting you exercise caution before signing up for a Kodi IPTV service that promises you unlimited access to all the entertainment ever! They are unlikely to be able to deliver on that promise, and while you may not be paying in dollars, the payoffs may well not be worth it.

But there are plenty of Kodi add-ons out there that let you access fantastic content. In fact, we have even come up with a list of The 75 Best Kodi Add-Ons to get you started.

FAQs

What Is IPTV?

IPTV stands for Internet Protocol Television, and it is a general term for any form of television that is broadcast over the internet rather than by using traditional means.

Is IPTV Legal?

IPTV technology is legal, but using the technology to watch pirated content is illegal. For example, watching TV online via that channels app with a registered account is entirely legal. But, if you use IPTV to watch pirated content, such as pay-per-view events that you have not paid for, this activity is illegal.

It is often claimed that in the United States it is not illegal to stream copyrighted material; it is only illegal to download it. But this is false. If you watch something that requires buffering, you are technically downloading that content, and therefore, in a legal gray area.

While copyright owners are unlikely to go after individual streamers like you, it has been known to happen, so you put yourself at risk.

Can You Get IPTV On Kodi?

Yes, you can get IPTV on Kodi. Some IPTV services offer registered Kodi add-ons, while others don’t. In this case, you can still access the IPTV but you will need to sideload it onto your machine.

Can IPTV Be Traced?

Yes, you can be traced when using IPTV, as a link can be made between your IP address and the service.

The best way to protect yourself against this is to use a VPN. While the Kodi service may say they are encrypted and your data is safe, a VPN allows you to mask your IP address, so the Kodi service does not have it, and to encrypt your own data so there is nothing to connect you to the service.

You should also not provide your personal details when making a purchase;if the company is “rumbled”, your information can be passed on. You should create an alternative email address not linked to you for the account, and, if possible, pay with Bitcoin or another alternative method, rather than provide your payment details.

Paid Kodi Add-Ons And IPTV Subscriptions: The Verdict

The bottom line is those marketing headlines that tell you that you can have access to all the entertainment you want for next to nothing do not tell you the whole story.

These Kodi add-ons are complicated to set up and use, and they often don’t deliver on everything they say they can do.

More than that, they can put you at risk. You are at relatively low risk of being picked up for illegal activity, you are a small fish, but the risk exists. But, if the company is forced to shut up shop, they are very likely to take your money and run.

Bottom line is that you can get something good, or you can get something for free. It all depends on what matters to you.

There are other options for streaming that can give you the quality and security you need while still cutting a huge chunk out of your cable bill. Read more here: Best Streaming Services.