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HBO Go

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

HBO GO
Type of site
Video on demand
DissolvedJuly 31, 2020; 4 years ago (2020-07-31) (North America)
June 29, 2021; 3 years ago (2021-06-29) (Latin America and the Caribbean)
October 26, 2021; 2 years ago (2021-10-26) (Nordic Europe and Spain)
March 8, 2022; 2 years ago (2022-03-08) (Central and Eastern Europe and Portugal)
Late 2024 (Asia)
Predecessor(s)HBO on Broadband
Successor(s)Max
HeadquartersNew York, New York,
United States
ParentHome Box Office, Inc.
RegistrationSubscription to HBO through participating pay television provider required to access content
LaunchedFebruary 18, 2010; 14 years ago (2010-02-18)
Current statusClosed (Americas and Europe)
Active (Asia)

HBO Go is an authenticated video-on-demand streaming service of the pay television network HBO, currently serving only the Southeast Asian region. The service originally allowed subscribers to access HBO's on-demand programming via the HBO website, mobile apps, and digital media players, among other devices, through their television providers.

History

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HBO Go was the successor to HBO on Broadband, a service launched in January 2008 exclusively for Time Warner Cable customers in Green Bay and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. HBO on Broadband offered 400 hours of content, including feature films, HBO original movies, specials, and series, at no extra charge for subscribers. Access required both a subscription to HBO and Time Warner Cable's Roadrunner internet service.[1][2]

On February 18, 2010, HBO Go was launched, initially available through Verizon FiOS. Within the first week, the application was downloaded over one million times, and by June 2011, the number surpassed three million.[3][4] At launch, HBO Go was only available on computers through the HBO website. iOS and Android applications were released on April 29, 2011.[5] Over the following years, the service expanded to other providers, including AT&T U-verse,[6] Comcast, Cox Communications, Time Warner Cable,[7] DirecTV,[8] Dish Network,[9] Suddenlink Communications,[10] Charter Communications,[11][12] and virtual MVPD services like AT&T TV Now, AT&T TV, and Hulu.

In October 2011, Roku became the first television-connected device to support HBO Go, with later availability on Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation, Samsung Smart TVs, and Xbox. Support for devices was subject to cable provider agreements.[13][14][15][16] In January 2019, HBO Go dropped support for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Samsung Smart TVs manufactured before 2013.[17]

On June 12, 2020, it was announced that HBO Go would be discontinued in the United States on July 31, 2020, in favor of HBO Max.[18] HBO Now, a separate direct-to-consumer version of the HBO service,[19] was also integrated into HBO Max at launch for most subscribers.[20][21]

Warner Bros. Discovery has continued to use the HBO Go branding for services in eight Southeast Asian markets. Although WarnerMedia initially planned to relaunch these services as HBO Max in 2022, the launch was postponed. The services, along with HBO Go in these markets, are now expected to be rebranded as Max, incorporating Discovery+ content, in fall 2024.[22][23][24][25]

Content

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HBO Go previously offered a selection of theatrically-released films from studios with distribution deals with HBO, including 20th Century Studios, Universal Pictures, and Warner Bros. Pictures, its sister company. A significant number of titles were added and removed from the service each month.

HBO original series were available on a permanent basis, with new episodes typically becoming available for streaming at the time of their initial broadcast in the United States' Eastern Time Zone on the linear HBO channel.[26]

Several past HBO series were not available on HBO Go, including Tales from the Crypt, Tenacious D, 1st & Ten, Da Ali G Show, and The Ricky Gervais Show.[27] The Larry Sanders Show and Arliss were not added until 2016 and 2018, respectively.[28][29] HBO Go did not provide live streams of HBO's linear channels, though programming was made available following its airing on the network.

Platforms

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References

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  1. ^ Gary Levin (January 21, 2008). "It's not TV, it's HBO – on your computer". USA Today. Gannett Company. Archived from the original on October 25, 2011. Retrieved October 5, 2012.
  2. ^ Peter Lauria (January 21, 2008). "HBO on Broadband in Restricted Rollout". New York Post. News Corporation. Archived from the original on January 11, 2009. Retrieved October 5, 2012.
  3. ^ Todd Spangler (May 10, 2011). "HBOGo Apps Top 1 Million Downloads In First Week". Multichannel News. NewBay Media. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
  4. ^ Kevin Sullivan (June 27, 2011). "HBO GO passes 3 million downloads. Is it worth it?". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Archived from the original on October 20, 2014. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
  5. ^ a b c Ryan Lawler (April 29, 2011). "HBO Go Now Available on iPad, iPhone and Android". Gigaom. GigaOmniMedia, Inc. Archived from the original on October 23, 2014. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
  6. ^ Lawler, Richard (November 29, 2010). "HBO GO, MAX GO now available on AT&T's U-verse". Engadget. Archived from the original on October 21, 2021. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
  7. ^ R. Thomas Umstead (March 2, 2011). "Cox To Offer HBO To Go". Multichannel News. NewBay Media. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
  8. ^ "DIRECTV to Launch HBO GO and MAX GO, April 12". DirecTV (Press release). April 11, 2011. Archived from the original on April 17, 2011. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
  9. ^ "Dish Network Offers HBO GO and MAX GO, Presenting More Than 1,800 On-Demand Movies and Original Series to Online Customers". Dish Network (Press release). April 21, 2011. Archived from the original on May 11, 2011. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
  10. ^ Todd Spangler (April 26, 2011). "Suddenlink Takes HBO And Cinemax To Go". Multichannel News. NewBay Media. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
  11. ^ Todd Spangler (July 21, 2011). "Charter Officially Delivers HBO, Cinemax To Go". Multichannel News. NewBay Media. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
  12. ^ "HBO GO / MAX GO". Charter Communications. Archived from the original on February 5, 2015. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
  13. ^ "HBO Go: Activate". Home Box Office Inc. Archived from the original on November 1, 2014. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
  14. ^ Anu Passary (December 18, 2014). "Comcast Allows HBO Go and Showtime Streaming on Roku". Tech Times. Archived from the original on December 22, 2014. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
  15. ^ https://help.hbogo.com/hc/en-us/articles/205404147-Can-I-subscribe-to-HBO-GO-by-using-Sling-as-my-TV-provider-[permanent dead link]
  16. ^ Dwayne Benefield. PS Vue: HBO, Cinemax, New Ultra Plan Arrive Today Archived March 8, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, playstation.com, September 29, 2016.
  17. ^ "Device support changes: PlayStation 3, Samsung TV, and Xbox 360". Archived from the original on February 22, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  18. ^ Solsman, Joan E. (June 12, 2020). "HBO is getting rid of HBO GO, renaming HBO Now since HBO Max is live". CNET. Archived from the original on June 12, 2020. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  19. ^ Chris Welch (March 9, 2015). "HBO Now coming in April for $14.99 per month, Apple TV price cut to $69". The Verge. Vox Media. Archived from the original on May 24, 2019. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
  20. ^ Hayes, Dade (May 20, 2020). "WarnerMedia Locks HBO Max Distribution Deals With Seven New Partners, From Pay-TV To PlayStation, Xbox And Samsung". Deadline. Archived from the original on May 20, 2020. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  21. ^ Flint, Joe; Rizzo, Lillian (May 27, 2020). "HBO Max Leaves AT&T at Odds With Amazon and Roku". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on May 27, 2020. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  22. ^ Frater, Patrick (January 28, 2022). "WarnerMedia Readies Ground in Asia for HBO Max, Expanded Local Production". Variety. Archived from the original on August 20, 2022. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
  23. ^ Spangler, Todd (August 4, 2022). "HBO Max, Discovery+ to Merge Into Single Streaming Platform Starting in Summer 2023". Variety. Archived from the original on August 5, 2022. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
  24. ^ "Warner Bros Discovery closes in on 'Max' as the name of its combined HBO Max-Discovery+ streaming service". CNBC. December 5, 2022. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  25. ^ Maas, Jennifer (April 12, 2023). "Warner Bros. Discovery Unveils 'Max': Everything Revealed at Combined HBO Max-Discovery+ Streaming Presentation". Variety. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
  26. ^ Jonathan Vankin (April 6, 2014). "'Game Of Thrones' Premiere Live Stream Online, But Will HBO Go Crash Again?". Inquisitr. Archived from the original on October 22, 2014. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
  27. ^ Erik Adams, Sam Adams; Phil Dyess-Nugent, Will Harris and Kyle Ryan (May 15, 2013). "It's not TV—and it's not available on HBO Go: 27-plus HBO originals unavailable from the streaming service". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on July 27, 2017. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  28. ^ It's Official: 'The Larry Sanders Show' Coming to HBO Go and HBO Now in September Archived August 2, 2020, at the Wayback Machine. The Hollywood Reporter. 30 July 2016.
  29. ^ HBO Original Series Arli$$: The Art of the Sports Superagen Available to Stream on HBO NOW and HBO GO Starting September 14, 2018. [dead link] The Futon Critic. 23 August 2018.
  30. ^ Adriana Lee (December 16, 2014). "HBO Go Hits Amazon Fire TV, May Bring Cord-Cutting Service Too". ReadWrite. Archived from the original on December 25, 2014. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
  31. ^ "HBO Go gets an Android TV app, but not for Comcast subscribers". Archived from the original on October 29, 2015. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  32. ^ Roberto Baldwin (June 19, 2013). "HBO GO Finally Arrives on Apple TV". Wired. Condé Nast. Archived from the original on December 22, 2016. Retrieved March 7, 2017.
  33. ^ Jim O'Neill (November 22, 2013). "HBO Go Launches on Chromecast as Mobile Video Mainstreams". Ooyala. Archived from the original on October 22, 2014. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
  34. ^ "HBO Latin America Press Room". www.hbolapress.com. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved May 20, 2019.
  35. ^ "Mola TV Gandeng HBO GO, Tawarkan Layanan Premium". Detikcom. September 5, 2020. Archived from the original on October 2, 2020. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  36. ^ "HBO Go Available on PS4 Later Today". Playstation. Sony Interactive. March 3, 2015. Archived from the original on March 3, 2015. Retrieved March 3, 2015.
  37. ^ "Introducing Roku LT and a Sneak Peek at HBO GO". Roku. October 11, 2011. Archived from the original on October 20, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2012.
  38. ^ "Roku Channel Store". Roku. Archived from the original on September 18, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2012.
  39. ^ Andrew Webster (February 17, 2012). "HBO Go now available on select Samsung Smart TVs". The Verge. Vox Media. Archived from the original on November 11, 2016. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
  40. ^ "TiVo adds HBO GO and Toon Goggles – the perfect DVR for all ages! - TiVo Blog". Archived from the original on April 8, 2017. Retrieved June 5, 2016.
  41. ^ Eddie Makuch (June 4, 2014). "HBO Go, Twitter, Vine Coming to Xbox One By End of 2014". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on October 8, 2014. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
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