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Comcast, Roku cut a deal for HBO Go and Showtime streaming (update)
On the same day HBO announced its streaming service is on the Amazon Fire TV, Roku has news of its own. Re/code found an FCC filing revealing that the media streamer folks have come to an agreement with Comcast. That means the cable giant's customers will finally be able to use HBO Go and Showtime Anytime on Roku media streamers, after years of the apps refusing to authenticate, making an ugly joke of the "TV Everywhere" slogan. While neither side has commented publicly or announced when the change will take effect, we've also heard that Comcast is talking to Amazon and could allow HBO Go access on its box / dongle soon. Update: And... it's live right now. Roku has put up a blog post announcing the change and interested users should be able to try it out immediately. We still don't know why it took so long, but we're glad it's done.
HBO Go is on Amazon's Fire TV now, Fire TV stick soon
It only took seven or so months since it was first announced, but HBO Go is now available on Amazon's Fire TV (along with SlingPlayer). Owners of the Fire TV Stick dongle will have to wait until this spring for access, but since they're probably Amazon Prime subscribers too, at least they have plenty of older HBO shows to stream in the meantime. The other bad news? HBO tells us that Comcast and Charter are currently not on the list of supported streaming providers. According to Amazon its selection of apps has quadrupled since launch, and the box is currently on sale for $79 instead of the $99 regular price, in case your holiday shopping isn't over with yet.
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.
HBO will re-air 'The Wire' in HD starting December 26th
Fans of HBO's 'The Wire' finally have a date for when the series will return to TV: December 26th. The day after Christmas a remastered HD cut of the show will be available in its entirety on HBO Go, and start airing (at the pace of one season per day) on HBO Signature. It's been said that series creator David Simon preferred the look of 4x3 aspect ratio, so how will the show look in widescreen HD? According to HBO, the process has been achieved by rescanning over 8,000 reels of original negatives, with extensive work to make sure it retains the feel of the original broadcast. If you're convinced, you can buy the series as a bundle or per season on the usual download sites (Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, Xbox Video and Vudu) starting January 5th, while a Blu-ray release is due next summer. [Image credit: AP Photo/Reed Saxon]
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.
Feedback Loop: Crowdfunding perils, dying passwords, cameras and more!
It's time for the latest edition of Feedback Loop! We discuss the dark and sometimes disappointing side of crowdfunding, ponder whether passwords are dying, look for point-and-shoot camera suggestions, share the cheapest ways to get HBO and talk about overly hyped gadgets. Head past the break to talk about all this and more with your fellow Engadget readers.
Fox tried to buy Time Warner -- and HBO -- for $80 billion
Could Fox News and CNN have the same owner? No, but close. 21 Century Fox has confirmed reports (first published by the New York Times) that it made an $80 billion bid for fellow media conglomerate Time Warner -- and was turned down, for now. Curiously, this comes just as Comcast is trying to swallow Time Warner Cable, but those two similarly-named companies are no longer directly connected. Time Warner (also no longer related to AOL, which owns this website) recently ditched its Time Inc. magazine properties, and now consists of three parts: the highly-profitable HBO, Turner and Warner Bros. According to the reports, Fox would sell CNN as part of the buyout to avoid regulatory hurdles caused by owning both large news networks, but as analyst Porter Bibb pointed out on Bloomberg TV, this would give it access to HBO, which he called "the only Netflix fighter left." [Image credit: Helen Sloan/courtesy of HBO]
Xbox One getting Twitter, Vine, and HBO Go by year's end
There you were, using your Xbox One, thinking how much you'd like to watch a variety of six second video clips. Right? Maybe? Okay, maybe you were using your Xbox One, thinking how much you'd like to see a list of what's trending on Twitter? Alright, let's stop kidding ourselves: there's a high likelihood no one is doing those things, but Microsoft is answering the non-existent call regardless and adding both services to the Xbox One. Those are just two of the 45 new apps heading to Xbox One and Xbox 360, including the long-promised HBO Go app, Comedy Central, Watch ABC and more. Moreover, the "most popular experiences" are scheduled to launch "by the end of this holiday season." Head below for the full, lengthy list of new apps and a video showing off Twitter integration. Spoilers: it's pretty silly!
The hidden value of Amazon's Fire TV
After a week with the Fire TV, I was confident that it was just another streamer, and our review reflects that. Amazon put a few nice tweaks on the existing set-top formula with an easy setup and voice search, but my TV stand is crowded with game consoles, dongles and other boxes that bring their own strengths. A month later, I've found that my initial experience didn't tell the entire story -- unlike other platforms that are locked down tight, letting the Fire TV languish as a Netflix/Amazon/Hulu box isn't showing what it can really do.
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.
HBO renews 'Silicon Valley' three episodes in
If you've been enjoying Mike Judge's (King of the Hill, Office Space) take on Silicon Valley, you aren't alone. After just three episodes, HBO has ordered a second season of the eponymous show. What's more, the outfit has also cleared a fourth term... err, season, of the political comedy Veep. Both have apparently done better in terms of viewership than the sadly ill-fated Hello Ladies, which is especially good news for Judge's satirical look at the NorCal tech corridor. Say what you will about being hasty, but it's pretty awesome to see the premium-TV outfit keep rewarding its viewers' favorite shows --regardless of whether or not they knock HBO Go offline. Now, if we could just get a True Detective season two announcement, all would be right with the world.
Watch the first episode of HBO's Silicon Valley on YouTube
Depending on who you listen to, Silicon Valley is either a utopia dedicated to ceaseless innovation and disruption... or a place where self-absorbed nouveau riche techies throw ostentatious parties and drive up housing prices. The real nature of the valley is hard enough to suss out even if you live there, but Mike Judge's Silicon Valley paints a not-too-parodic picture of the new wild west for the rest of us to dissect. Don't have HBO (or a friends HBO Go credentials)? Never fear: The first episode is now available on YouTube. Judge sets everything into motion pretty slowly, but there's plenty there for startup nerds to latch on to: There's an incubator run out of some dude's house, an abundance of pale coders (some with questionable facial hair) and the ticking drama-bomb of a startup eschewing big money from an established company in favor of going alone.
Viewers see red as Game of Thrones premiere crashes HBO servers
Viewing of the Game of Thrones season debut came to a crashing halt yesterday thanks to server problems with HBO Go. The cable outfit first reported the problem late yesterday via Twitter, and finally restored full service early this morning. That set off a firestorm of complaints, and even conspiracy theories that the service was trying to shut out passcode borrowers. HBO denied all that, of course, saying that the service just suffered "overwhelming demand" -- no doubt from viewers anxious to see if GoT could top last season's debauchery.
HBO Go arrives on PlayStation 3 today
It's been a long time coming, but today the HBO Go app is finally available on PlayStation 3. Sadly, those of us who moved last-gen's consoles out of the living room to make space for shiny new ones are still in the lurch -- the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions are still missing release dates. But for the rest of us, still enjoying The Last of Us' DLC or soaking up those delicious free PS+ games, there are episodes of True Detective to watch. That is, unless you have Comcast, since like Roku and Samsung's Smart TV platform, the PS3 is not on the provider's list of approved devices along with the Xbox 360 and Apple TV.
Time Warner reveals how much money HBO makes, and why it's not splitting from cable yet
Wondering why you still need a cable TV package to subscribe to HBO in the US? Because HBO is making truckloads of cash keeping things the way they are -- even though that might not last forever. Its parent company Time Warner (which spun off Time Warner Cable in 2009) announced financial results for the year, and for the first time in years, it included some details about HBO's business. HBO alone pulled in $1.3 billion in the last three months of 2013, and $4.9 billion for the entire year. Netflix's numbers are actually pretty close, as the streaming company posted sales of $1.18 billion for the quarter and $4.3 billion for the year, despite having fewer customers than HBO worldwide. The real difference right now is in how much money each keeps in profits after costs for things like original content (House of Cards and Game of Thrones aren't made for free) are accounted for. HBO's operating profit in Q4 is $414 million, and $1.7 billion for the year, but Netflix's Q4 profit came in at $82 million, and for its efforts it made $228 million all year. According to Variety, Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes said on the earnings call that HBO and Cinemax added about 2 million customers last year, while Netflix grew by 6 million, and added more than 2 million customers just in Q4. If that difference in growth is making Bewkes sweat, then he's not showing it publicly, saying "HBO is in a league of its own" and pointing to stats that show viewers with HBO and Netflix actually view more of both. The "Albanian Army" is expected to continue its European expansion in 2014 and has already sealed up exclusives for streaming content in the next few years, we'll wait and see if that changes the landscape significantly.
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Two years later, DirecTV customers can finally use Roku players to watch HBO Go
Even as HBO Go has launched on new platforms over the years, people who pay for TV service and HBO have occasionally found that their provider won't play along. That's been the case for DirecTV subscribers with a Roku ever since the app rolled out in 2011, but now things have changed. Customers started seeing the change Thursday and now the DirecTV Twitter account confirms subscribers can use their account logins on Roku. The Syfy Now app on iOS also has a fresh update that says it supports DirecTV accounts, while some users say they've been able to login to apps for History, A&E, and Lifetime, although that doesn't appear to be officially available yet. Comcast Xfinity customers are the most notable remaining group still denied activations on Roku and Samsung Smart TVs, although the service does support Apple TV and Xbox 360. Will that ever change? After this move and the recent arrival of YouTube on the platform, here's hoping Comcast, Roku and Time Warner can get together to keep the streak going.
HBO Go is coming... to PS3 and PS4
HBO Go is en route to PlayStation. While there isn't a release window for the premium service's streaming app, Sony's VP of business development assures it'll be "soon" for the PS3, with the PS4 version to follow. However, we do know that as with other streaming services on the platforms (including Amazon Instant Video and Netflix), the app's functionality won't be locked behind a paywall, like it is on Sony's biggest console rival.
HBO Go comes to Chromecast on both Android and iOS
See, when the Chromecast first launched, it was intriguing primarily because of its exceptionally low price point. People who ran out and bought one (which included more than a few Engadget editors) were investing in promised future functionality, not its current feature set. Well, it's safe to say that money was not wasted. With today's announcement that HBO Go will now support Chromecast, Google has brought most of the major non-sports streaming properties to its tiny dongle, including Netflix and Hulu. It's particularly impressive given how notoriously slow HBO has been to bring its streaming service to "new" platforms. Now Google-loving nerds across the US will be able to get their "Game of Thrones" fix on demand on their TV simply by tapping an icon on their Android or iOS tablet. Of course, that is if you're an HBO subscriber. The update is already hitting both the iTunes App Store and Google Play, so go download it now.
Comcast bundle ties HBO, local TV and internet together for just $40 per month, at first
If your ideal TV setup is HBO Go by itself, one option for a setup close to that is being offered by a seemingly unlikely source: Comcast. The "Internet Plus" promo dug up by DSLReports and GigaOm is the closest thing we've seen so far, promising a limited basic channel lineup (varies by area), but local channels are included, HBO (with HBO Go), Comcast's Streampix service and 25Mbps internet, for $40 per month for the first year ($70 per month after). HBO execs have repeatedly referred to the possibility of tying HBO Go to internet services in the way the cable channel latches on to TV packages, and this may be the kind of thing they have in mind. It's still tethered to services pushed by the company's usual partners, and could achieve their goals of getting elusive cord-cutters and cord-nevers to get a taste of the TV life.
