While not a certainty, it seemed a likelihood that once Time Warner Cable and HBO struck a deal to make HBO Go available to TWC subscribers, it wouldn’t be long before Cablevision followed suit. Fortunately for those Cablevision subscribers who have HBO, that’s proven to be the case.
Last week we shared the news that Time Warner Cable subscribers will soon have access to HBO Go. Beta testing is in the works and the feature is expected to be available within the next month. This news comes after months of waiting (and a year of negotiation between TWC and HBO). Now Cablevision announced the news today that iO TV customers who subscribe to HBO and/or Cinemax will have free, unlimited access to HBO Go and Max Go. The digital platforms, which can be accessed at HBOGo.com/MaxGo.com or via a portable device apps, offers movies and original programming, as well as bonus content. In the case of HBO Go, it’s over 1400 titles, including hours and hours of HBO’s current and previously aired TV shows. From what I’ve seen of it, the selection seems much more comprehensive than HBO On Demand.
“Given the success and popularity of our own Optimum App, we know our customers want the flexibility to watch the programming they receive as part of their cable television service in new ways, on a variety of devices, so we are very pleased to have reached agreement to offer HBO GO and MAX GO to our digital cable customers,” said John Trierweiler, executive vice president of product management. “With the Optimum App and other TV Everywhere agreements, Cablevision is leading the way in empowering customers to watch what they want, when and where they want it, on an expanding array of television platforms.”
The deal is done, which is the good news. The less than good news is that Cablevision subscribers may have to wait a few months for the feature to launch. “The next few months” is the vague phrase used in the announcement for when the official launch will take place. Hopefully that'll be sooner rather than later. Once it does launch, subscribers will be able to log in to HBOGo with their Optimum password.
As Eric Kessler Co-President of HBO notes, Cablevision's participation in this feature now means HBO Go is available to 98% of HBO subscribers.
