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HBO 'Go' and 'Now' names are going away, leaving just HBO and HBO Max
HBO is retiring HBO Go and rebranding HBO Now in order to clear up confusion surrounding its newest app, HBO Max, the company has confirmed to Engadget. HBO Now, which serves the same purpose for those without cable, will be rebranded as simply HBO.
HBO Max's early sign-up discount ends at 3AM ET
Today is the last day to save $3 a month on HBO Max.
HBO Now app leaves older Apple TVs
HBO Now has been removed from second- and third-generation Apple TV boxes as HBO focuses on newer hardware.
Stream HBO Go and HBO Now with watch party app Scener
Scener users can now host virtual watch parties and stream HBO Go and HBO Now movies and TV shows.
HBO will extend streaming support for older Apple TVs
HBO planned on pulling its HBO Now and HBO Go apps from older Apple TVs on April 30th, but has delayed the decision.
HBO Go and Now won't work on older Apple TV models after April
HBO will pull support for its HBO Go and HBO Now apps for 2nd and 3rd generation Apple TV units on April 30th.
HBO's free streaming includes 'The Wire' and its Theranos documentary
As efforts to slow the spread of coronavirus by encouraging social distancing stretch into another week, HBO has opened up its library for some free viewing. Not everything is available -- non-subscribers can't catch up on Game of Thrones yet -- but full series runs of standout shows like The Wire, The Sopranos, Veep and True Blood will be available at no cost starting tomorrow, April 3rd. Other options include documentaries like the good-but-stretched-to-fill-time McMillion$ and its Theranos documentary The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley, as well as a few movies. The free streaming via HBO Now and HBO Go will be available "for a limited time," and occurs just as HBO's parent company WarnerMedia announced its new CEO -- former Hulu leader Jason Kilar -- and prepares to launch its assault on the streaming market with HBO Max. Not a bad time to get some good PR, reach out to potential customers and make sure that every single person knows how great The Wire is.
'Westworld' season 3 trailer sets the stage for an AI battle
HBO has released a new trailer for the upcoming third season of Westworld. It shows Dolores, Maeve and Westworld's other characters leave the confines of the park that defined so much of show's past two seasons. Additionally, we see more of the futuristic city we saw glimpses of in the first trailer HBO shared last July. There's also the suggestion Maeve and Dolores will come into a conflict, with a mysterious new character instructing the former to find and kill her fellow android. To top it all off, an orchestral version of "Sweet Child O' Mine" by Guns N' Roses accompanies the latter half of the trailer.
'Westworld' season 3 premieres March 15th
Westworld's third season will hit HBO and HBO Go on March 15th, according to a tweet from the show's official Twitter account. HBO also released a new trailer that predicts several dystopic decades for humanity around the subject of "divergence." It starts with current issues like the Hong Kong protests and Trump impeachment, then moves on to more ominous future events including a third Russian revolution.
The Netflix business model is bad news for indie games
The Netflix model doesn't work for video games. Neither does the Spotify plan, the HBO Go ecosystem or the Amazon Prime Video marketplace. Sure, digital distribution is king and subscription-based streaming services will absolutely become a dominant market force in gaming. But, when it comes to paying content creators, current subscription models just don't make sense. Especially for indie games.
HBO's 'Hackerville' cybercrime series debuts in the US
HBO is releasing Hackerville, its German series about a talented Romanian teenage hacker, to American audiences. The show follows German cybercrime investigator Liza Metz (Anna Schumacher) who is sent back to her hometown in Romania to investigate a major hack against a German bank. Lisa teams up with a local cop, Adam Sandor (Andi Vasluianu) to hunt down the criminals. Meanwhile, a local teenager and talented hacker, Cipi, (Voicu Dumitras) is being scouted by both the police and those with more nefarious motives. Shot in both Romania and Germany, Hackerville was HBO Europe's first co-international production. For American audiences, the network is only releasing the series on HBO Now, HBO Go and HBO On Demand.
HBO eyes April premiere for its standalone streaming service
Reports have been pretty consistent that HBO will offer a direct-to-consumer streaming option sometime next year. When that might land and what that might look like, however, have been subject to rampant (and usually unfounded) speculation. Today, at least a little more detail is trickling in. The company is currently planning to launch the service, in some capacity, in April alongside the premiere of season five of Game of Thrones. Though, that timeline is subject to the usual caveats about plans changing and all that jazz. Those plans were revealed in a memo (which you'll find after the break) announcing plans to cancel its own streaming platform project "Maui" and license MLB Advanced's much-lauded tech instead.
Google Fiber is growing slowly, by design
"Keep Austin Weird." It's the proud slogan of the Texas capital, and it wears it well, especially with its eclectic mix of culture, history and technology. Pretty soon, Austin will have one more reason to be proud: it'll be one of a few cities in America to carry Google Fiber, the search giant's experimental foray as a broadband provider. "It is, as always, step by step," Google Fiber head of project management Adam Smith tells me. Smith is sitting across from me in Austin's new Google Fiber space, hesitantly explaining how Google isn't very experienced at this whole "internet provider" thing it's been doing. On paper, Austin is the third city to support Google's internet service, but reality is less black and white. "Provo was an acquisition," Smith reminds me. "This is really the second organic city... ...it's sort of also saying that this is also new for us."
HBO Go app arrives on Xbox One
HBO launched its HBO Go app on Xbox One today, finally allowing owners to stream episodes from shows like True Detective and Game of Thrones. The network also offers a number of films, such as its documentary on gaming addiction, Love Child. The app is Kinect compatible, so viewers can navigate the network's streaming selections with their voice or gestures. HBO's app was one of 35 announced for Microsoft's platform in June that are expected to launch by the end of the year. Of course, HBO Go is available to those with a subscription; stand-alone streaming subscriptions for HBO will first be available in 2015. The app also requires authentication with an eligible TV provider, a list of which can be found on Microsoft's announcement page. [Image: HBO]
HBO Go is now available for Xbox One
After many, many promises, HBO Go is now available on Xbox One. The app is already available for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, but the Xbox One launch marks the first time the premium streaming service is accessible from a current-gen console. The app supports voice and gesture controls through Kinect, Microsoft says. As always, users will need to have a valid HBO subscription through their cable provider to watch shows, though that's likely change with the launch of the network's standalone streaming service next year.
Sound Off! Would you pay for HBO's standalone streaming service?
At last, our long national nightmare is nearly over. Earlier this week HBO announced plans to introduce a standalone streaming service in 2015. This is especially exciting for those of us who've been "borrowing" our parents' HBO GO access. Are you ready to put your money where your mouth is? Stop by the Engadget forums to let us know if you'd be willing to pay for access to HBO's catalog -- how much.
Standalone HBO subscription service launches in 2015
Get your Game of Thrones on. HBO will be available as a standalone streaming subscription in 2015, CEO Richard Plepler announced today. During an investor meeting, Plepler cited the 10 million homes that are broadband-only – meaning they don't have a cable subscription – and noted that this figure is expected to grow. "That is a large and growing opportunity that should no longer be left untapped," he said in a press release. "It is time to remove all barriers to those who want HBO. So, in 2015, we will launch a stand-alone, over-the-top, HBO service in the United States. We will work with our current partners. And, we will explore models with new partners. All in, there are 80 million homes that do not have HBO and we will use all means at our disposal to go after them." There's no mention of price just yet. HBO has been experimenting with web-based options for a while, and its existing streaming service (tied to a cable subscription), HBO Go, is available on Xbox 360 and PS3, with plans to roll out for Xbox One and PS4. In the US, gaming consoles are the most popular way to access streaming television and movie content, beating out smart TVs and set-top boxes. Roughly 46 percent of broadband-connected homes use a console to access non-gaming content online, Home Media Magazine reported last month. HBO's television offerings include True Detective, The Newsroom, Boardwalk Empire and, of course, Game of Thrones. [Image: HBO]
HBO Go, Twitter among 35 apps coming to Xbox One by year's end [Update]
Xbox One and Xbox 360 will receive 45 apps by the end of the holiday season, Microsoft announced today. Among the apps are Twitter, Facebook, Vine, HBO Go, ShowTime Anytime, Comedy Central and Major League Gaming, some of which already have a presence on Xbox 360. Xbox One's Twitter app will integrate directly with its live TV offerings, as viewers will be able to view a stream of tweets for shows they're watching at the moment, as well as a "trending" section of the console's OneGuide that ties to popular programming going on at the time. Head past the break for a full list of the incoming apps and the regions they will launch in, courtesy of Xbox Wire. Update: To clarify, 35 of the apps will arrive on Xbox One as opposed to the 45 combined for Xbox One and Xbox 360. We've updated our headline accordingly.
For HBO, it's all about making 'good shit'
It's not often that HBO CEO Richard Plepler is out doing some public speaking about his company. Today, however, Plepler took the stage at The Atlantic's New York Ideas event in The Big Apple, where he was interviewed by NBC's Willie Geist to talk about where HBO stands and where it's headed. While Plepler may not have revealed any major secrets during the interview, it is always interesting to hear how the Home Box Office boss feels about the current status of the premium channel. For example, he talked about having lunch earlier in the day with a friend, who told him how HBO is known for making "good shit." For Plepler, that's music to the ears, as he said HBO is always striving to have the best content possible. "We're trying to create new addicts and build a new generation of viewers. What we're trying to do is become a magnet for the best talent to come to work," he stated.
Daily Roundup: Samsung's love of plastic, Siri for Apple TV and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
