HBO standalone service launching in 2015......

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Love to see this. Start cutting out the loads of channels that I never watch.

Standalone HBO subscription service launches in 2015 | Joystiq

[Grover]

Goodbye cable.

[Autumn]

Wow. Awesome.

[Galaril]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Love to see this. Start cutting out the loads of channels that I never watch.

Standalone HBO subscription service launches in 2015 | Joystiq

Two questions that come to my mind. One, will be interested to see if they price this under, at or above what the current price is for a premium chnannel like HBO ($20).
Two, depending on price it will be interesting to see if how cable providers react that also provide internet to a home. So, will they throttle the bandwidth from HBO to homes who only have internet and not cable tv plans.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Galaril

Two questions that come to my mind. One, will be interested to see if they price this under, at or above what the current price is for a premium chnannel like HBO ($20).
Two, depending on price it will be interesting to see if how cable providers react that also provide internet to a home. So, will they throttle the bandwidth from HBO to homes who only have internet and not cable tv plans.

I'm not sure that providers want to play that kind of hardball with HBO. It's one thing to do it with Netflix. It's another thing to do it to a service provider that gives them some big income opportunities.

[Galaril]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

I'm not sure that providers want to play that kind of hardball with HBO. It's one thing to do it with Netflix. It's another thing to do it to a service provider that gives them some big income opportunities.

Yeah I agree though wouldn't be the first time they have done something
stupid.

[Blackadar]

It will be interesting to see how this is priced, though I won't pay $20/month for it under any circumstances. I'll just keep torrenting the latest Game of Thrones episodes at that price.

[Autumn]

This could really start to crack open the cable system if it is successful.

[flere-imsaho]

Originally Posted by Blackadar

It will be interesting to see how this is priced, though I won't pay $20/month for it under any circumstances. I'll just keep torrenting the latest Game of Thrones episodes at that price.

Yeah, that's the basis of my skepticism, though I do feel it's an excellent sign that HBO is going to do this, from the perspective that I hope it ends up extending to other content providers.

The problem is, I think, that for most cable networks the consumer is only interested in particular shows, not the network itself. Exceptions might include ESPN (most folks would happily pay $x/month for access to a variety of live sports), PBS Kids (most parents would happily pay $BIGNUM/month for access to any kids shows, on demand, except that PBS Kids is already free), some of the DIY channels, food channels, etc... (but at low monthly costs).

For channels like HBO, FX, AMC, etc... the pricing model is not a monthly subscription, but single-purchase (i.e. the cost of a DVD). If HBO's service is free and you use it to purchase content such as a per-season purchase of GoT for, say, $20/season, they've got a winner. But if they charge $20/month for all content, well, people probably subscribe for a few months, watch what they wanted in the back catalog, and then cancel.

Still, it's a positive advancement.

[ISiddiqui]

It'll likely be $20+. HBO is still not going to want to piss off cable companies too much - after all, they do the vast majority of HBO's marketing and will be the main source of income even after a standalone service.

Of course, we also don't know what shape it will come in. We are assuming HBO GO, but the CEO of HBO didn't actually say that. I wonder if it'll be more like an On Demand streaming thing of shows that are currently on HBO (and past seasons of them). Quite possibly could be the case if HBO is partnering up with, say, Amazon Prime, which has a number of old HBO shows under their agreement last year.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by flere-imsaho

If HBO's service is free and you use it to purchase content such as a per-season purchase of GoT for, say, $20/season, they've got a winner.

This is also a possibility. A standalone service being more like Amazon Prime with non-premium cable shows. Though it wouldn't be $20/season. It'd likely be something like $3-$5 an episode with the ability to watch it live (your card is charged as soon as it airs).

Of course HBO would have to dramatically upgrade its servers for any standalone service. They did not fare well with Game of Thrones' first ep this season.

Though there is some talk of HBO closing off the HBO GO loophole (giving your password to someone else) when it releases a standalone service.

[jeff061]

Bout time.

[stevew]

I believe most providers already offer a very limited HBO package if you ask. This is going to have to be well over $20 a month anyways.

[panerd]

Originally Posted by Blackadar

It will be interesting to see how this is priced, though I won't pay $20/month for it under any circumstances. I'll just keep torrenting the latest Game of Thrones episodes at that price.

Hence the reason why it's $20/month for the paying customers.

[cartman]

The lack of any details doesn't inspire much confidence. No mention of price nor content, other than it will be "standalone and over the top".

[Blackadar]

Originally Posted by panerd

Hence the reason why it's $20/month for the paying customers.

Thanks for covering me!

Of course, HBO can't complain too much since I ended up buying the Blu Ray disks after downloading the episodes. They made their money. I suppose $20/mo is better than the $120 plus it would cost to get cable (which I don't need) plus HBO. But frankly it's easier to just nab the episodes via Bittorrent and then buy the disks when they're released.

Contrast that with The Walking Dead. Season 4 just came out on Netflix and we're starting to watch it. No Torrents involved and frankly the household likes TWD much better. We don't mind waiting so long as we have a reasonable assurance that the content is coming out. It goes to show that people will get the content they want the way they want it. The trick is to give people options, so this is a good step. I've always enjoyed HBO and should they offer more compelling content than just GoT (I'm not a big fan of their other shows right now), then I'll be far more likely to subscribe for $20.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by cartman

The lack of any details doesn't inspire much confidence. No mention of price nor content, other than it will be "standalone and over the top".

It's how you build hype .

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by flere-imsaho

PBS Kids (most parents would happily pay $BIGNUM/month for access to any kids shows, on demand, except that PBS Kids is already free)

Note that I pay less than $10/month for Netflix streaming, and it includes all the PBS Kids shows, lots of Disney stuff, etc.

[flere-imsaho]

Yeah, I mean, I'd gladly pay $10/month just for PBS kids (assuming I could do it on multiple devices).