1,400 movies, TV shows added to HBO Go
Company expands its content portfolio for HBO Go by adding more than 1,400 titles to the service, which is only available to HBO subscribers.
HBO is doubling down on its video-streaming service.
The cable network announced yesterday that it has brought in more than 1,400 more titles to HBO Go. With that addition, the company said that customers can watch "virtually all of HBO's programming inventory."
The service boasts every single episode of "The Sopranos," "Sex and the City," and more recent favorites like "Boardwalk Empire" and "Entourage." A slew of movies were also added.
HBO finds itself in a heated battle with Netflix, the leading streaming service in the business. Unlike many other networks, including Fox and ABC, among others, HBO doesn't offer any of its programming on Netflix. And HBO has made it clear in the past that the chances of that happening are quite slim.
Back in January, The Hollywood Reporter cited a source who said the only way Netflix would get a "meaningful amount of HBO content" is if the streaming provider would charge customers $20 per month, rather than it's current $7.99. That sentiment was preceded last summer by HBO co-President Eric Kessler who told Bloomberg that Netflix customers would need to "pay a premium" for HBO content.
But even with such stipulations, it's tough to say whether HBO will ever offer its content to Netflix. In the same Hollywood Reporter story, Jeff Cusson, HBO senior vice president of corporate affairs, said his company "believes in content exclusivity, especially for high-value content." And as much as some customers might want to see "The Sopranos" on Netflix, he said that HBO "has no intention of making its content available for streaming" on the service.
So, for now, HBO subscribers will need to dole out their standard monthly fee for access to HBO content. But as the company is quick to point out, that charge gives them access to "HBO's linear channels, HBO On Demand, and now the expanded HBO Go." It's a prospect that HBO's Kessler calls an "unmatched value proposition."
HBO Go is available to HBO subscribers on Comcast Xfinity TV, Verizon FiOS, Cox Advanced TV, and AT&T U-Verse.