Philo streaming service and Amazon's new 'Lord of the Rings' TV show

This is c/net and here are the stories that matter right now. A&E discovery scripts, Viacom and AMC, have officially launched new streaming service, Philo. It's a compelling line-up if you're okay with giving up dedicated channels for sports, news, and local network. The service starts at $16 a month for 35 channels with a focus on entertainment, lifestyle, and knowledge-focused programming. Channels like Comedy Central, BBC America, and Science are part of the service while cable mainstays like ESPN, CNN, and local channels are not. Launch platforms include Roku, iOS and most modern web browsers. Philo says a dedicated Android app and other streaming services are coming soon. Amazon announced it acquired the TV rights to The Lord of the Rings, and will produce multiple seasons of an adaptation. Amazon's press release says the series will take place in Middle-Earth before the events of The Lord of the Rings And that the deal also includes a potential spin-off series. The move appears to be the answer to Amazon's very own CEO Jeff Bezos, who reportedly demanded Amazon Studios find a Game of Thrones-esque juggernaut for itself. There's no word on when the show might make its debut, but when it does, it'll be available exclusively on Amazon Prime Video. Video game company Electronic Arts adjusted pricing for its controversial loop box system in Star Wars Battlefront II. After facing eight major backlash online from gamers who felt the system was a form of paid to win. A Reddit comment defending the system posted EA representative Quickly became the site's most disliked comment, with over 436,000 downloads in less than 24 hours. EA then announced it would decrease the cost of unlockable heroes by 75 percent, and update the game immediately to reflect the changes. [MUSIC] [SOUND] Stay up to date with the latest, by downloading the cnet tech today app in the apple or google play stores