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“Maybe HBO Go, with our broadband partners, could evolve”, HBO CEO Richard Plepler told Reuters after the Season 3 premiere of Game Of Thrones. HBO launched HBO GO in 2010 to let cable HBO subscribers view shows on Internet devices such as iPads or Android tablets. However, HBO GO is only available to viewers who pay varying monthly fees for cable TV service, plus additional subscription costs for HBO or other premium channels that can push their cable bills to $100 monthly or more. Plepler suggested that HBO GO possibly could also be packaged with a monthly Internet service for a lower cost. Customers could pay $50 a month for their broadband and an extra $10 or $15 for HBO. Plepler in January ruled out an Internet-only product because it’s not in the company’s best interests. Even so, Game of Thrones has been pirated heavily online, and making HBO Go available to non-subscribers would provide a legal alternative. John Bradley-West, one of the actors on the show, said piracy might be reduced if HBO offered a season pass via Apple’s iTunes store. For now, though, HBO is not changing its Game of Thrones distribution windows for DVDs and downloads.
HBO Go Considered For Non-Cable Subscribers: Report
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I would gladly cut my cable tomorrow if I could order HBO GO as a standalone service. HBO programs are the only reason I currently keep my cable subscription.
Don’t think the cable companies don’t know that. That’s why I think this idea is toast, at least for now. It screws with the cable model too much.
Yep, considering that HBO is owned by TimeWarner, which has its own cable division,, it is unlikely they will offer HBO only in locations where it is available via cable. Because, most certainly people would drop their cable. Most T.V. shows can be watched at network sites, so there really would not be any need for cable.
Plenty of people have already cut their cable anyway. I cut mine 4 years ago and have no intention of going back. Right now, HBO doesn’t cost $12/month, it costs $80+/month when you have to buy a cable package first. Screw ‘em.
Now, if they offered an alternative and allowed me to subscribe to HBO without a cable subscription, I’d be all over it. HBO is great, but it’s not $80/month great.
@Dan and don’t those cable companies just know that. That’s why they won’t let HBO do it.
uh, hell yes
This is a great idea. HBOs Girls gets about 4.6 million when OnDemand, DVR and HBO Go ratings are counted. Girls is really popular. It’s just that the younger audience is watching it later.
You Girls apologists just kill me. Yeah, that’s lovely, Jack, but when you factor the same in for anything on Showtime, or hell Game of Thrones, Girls is still pulling in maybe a 5th as many viewers.
I would gladly stop using my friends password and pay for the service. I want to give them my money.
I cut the chord awhile ago, but I’d happily pay an extra 10 or 15 bucks a month to my Internet bill for HBO Go, especially now that I can stream it to Apple TV from my iPad.
I would sign up in a second!
Please! And I hope Showtime follows…
Only two networks worth watching anymore.
Thanks for the insight, Lena! Can you provide any evidence for these ridiculous claims?
HBO claims that “Girls” averaged a gross audience of 4.6 million viewers per episode in its second season, when all linear plays, including HBO On Demand/HBO Go and DVR playback are counted, which is pretty much on par with its first season. Per the network, 27.4 percent of the gross audience for “Girls” comes from HBO On Demand and HBO GO.
http://www.bizjournals.com/losangeles/news/2013/03/19/hbos-girls-benefits-from.html
Wow, I yearn for the good old days when my cable bill was “only” $100 a month.
Why does everything have to be through Apple? Just offer it to anyone who has internet through an ISP that also offers TV services which is pretty much EVERYONE! Not everyone likes, has or wants to support Apple and doing so through them will most likely cause Apple to charge even MORE money on top of the Internet subscription and HBO subscription so no thanks. Just offer it and I’ll gladly pay for it.
can’t wait for itemized TV — we need an Apple TV where we can pay for individual channels / shows in a easy legal way.
I’ve long since cut the cord and I watch Game of Thrones and other HBO series via Netflix – on DVD. Clunky, sure, but far from a hardship. If HBO wants to do a deal with Netflix to get their shows on streaming, I’m more than willing to watch it that way. But I won’t nother to sign up for a different service or pay more money.
It’s time consumers put their foot down and demand what they want, not what the corporations want. We have all the power, we need only exercise it and be patient. They will crack before we do. After all, we don’t need to watch HBO to earn a living, but they need us or they’re out on the street.
Except GOT is currently one of the most pirated programs. So many people are not willing to wait for the DVD to be available or pay for an HBO sub, and instead justify stealing it. The sad thing is this rampant theft may have more of an impact on changing the cable model than any other protest. It’s a complete win for HBO to be have their service offered wthout requireing a cable subscription, even if an internet sub is still required. Even most homes that have cut the cord still have an internet sub in their home.
I hope this online service happens – I would pay for it in a heartbeat. But if this happens, it better be available in Canada too! Canadians already feel ripped off enough not having access to Amazon Prime and Hulu. Don’t American’s want our money, too? ‘Cause we’re just dying to hand it over!
Some people actually can’t afford to subscribe to HBO, but can – and do – occasionally subscribe “ala carte” to individual seasons of shows they want to watch, using services like iTunes, or use Netflix and Hulu Plus instead of cable, because it’s cheaper and more flexible. I’m one of those people. I’m too busy to arrange my life around a TV show, and too broke to subscribe to premium cable, but for some shows I will scrape up the cash.
If a streaming service like Hulu or Netflix could score a licensing deal to offer GOT for their streaming services, both they and HBO would make BANK. And cut piracy by a huge percentage, I would guess.
I don’t have cable. Never have. Never will. I would sign up for HBO Go in a heartbeat if it were offered to non-cable subscribers.