Sling TV adding live and on-demand HBO in new $15 add-on tier

Posted:
in General Discussion edited April 2015
Apple is not the only cord-cutting option for those who can't live without HBO content, as Dish Network on Wednesday announced that its Sling TV over-the-top web television service would add HBO as a $15-per-month add-on within the next two weeks.




Unlike HBO Now -- which is exclusive to Apple at launch -- consumers will not be able to purchase HBO access from Sling TV independently. Instead, they will need to subscribe to Sling's $20-per-month base plan, then add the new HBO package, bumping the total cost to $35 per month.

Additionally, HBO on Sling TV will include just one of HBO's 13 channels, though subscribers will gain access to the entire on-demand catalog.

"It is has always been our desire to make the HBO subscription widely accessible," HBO distribution executive Tom Woodbury said in a release. "Sling TV is a part of that ongoing evolution and we believe HBO is a great addition to the platform."

There is no word on exactly when HBO will launch on Sling TV, but it will bow within the next two weeks, in time for the season premier of Game of Thrones. The same is true for HBO Now, which Apple announced during its "Spring Forward" event in March.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 16
    gtrgtr Posts: 3,231member
    Happy Birthday Apple.
  • Reply 2 of 16
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    HBO seems to be the only forward-thinking channel out there.
  • Reply 3 of 16
    justp1ayinjustp1ayin Posts: 213member

    the shortest 3 month exclusive ever

  • Reply 4 of 16
    cpsrocpsro Posts: 3,237member

    How many of the 13 channels will HBO Now include?

  • Reply 5 of 16
    It's nice, not caring about TV. I save so much money.
  • Reply 6 of 16
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SpamSandwich View Post



    HBO seems to be the only forward-thinking channel out there.

    Hardly...they are getting their 15 bucks either way but I see what you are saying. Its only a matter a time before everyone else falls in line.

  • Reply 7 of 16
    b9botb9bot Posts: 238member



    To expensive! You add all the other channels from Sling and you are already paying more than a cable provider.

    They also need local channels, High definition, and every channel should be separate and at a much lower price and you pick what you want to pay for.

    Then you will have a new TV experience that people will flock too.

    Right now however it the same old thing only online instead of with a cable provider.

  • Reply 8 of 16
    ciacia Posts: 269member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by b9bot View Post

     



    To expensive! You add all the other channels from Sling and you are already paying more than a cable provider.

    They also need local channels, High definition, and every channel should be separate and at a much lower price and you pick what you want to pay for.

    Then you will have a new TV experience that people will flock too.

    Right now however it the same old thing only online instead of with a cable provider.




    Not really.  We share a cable internet connection with our neighbors.  They pay for internet, and I've been letting them use my Amazon Prime membership to watch stuff.  I'll probably add this to the mix.   So every month I'll be paying about $50 total for content, and they are paying about $55 for the internet access.  Cheaper then having actual cable TV.   (my other housemate shares her Netflix account with us, so everyone gets content yet not one person has to pay out the ass for it.  Who says socialism is bad?

  • Reply 9 of 16
    john.bjohn.b Posts: 2,742member

    I wonder which shows on HBO will be excluded?

     

    http://arstechnica.com/business/2015/03/sling-tv-didnt-tell-users-its-newest-channels-come-with-restricted-content/

     

    Quote:

    Over the weekend, reddit users posting on the subreddit /r/cordcutters were surprised to find that some of Sling TV's most recent channel additions—A&E, Lifetime, Lifetime Movie Network (LMN), and WE TV—were not entirely available. Shows like Criminal Minds on A&E, Kept Woman on Lifetime, and Intervention on LMN were throwing up a “Restricted Content” notice, sometimes for eight- and ten-hour blocks.

     

    The new channels are not part of Sling TV's basic, $20-per-month package, but require users to pay an extra $5 per month for the Lifestyle Extra package.

     

    “Due to rights restrictions, this content can not be streamed on Sling TV,” the notice tells Sling TV users.



  • Reply 10 of 16
    jbdragonjbdragon Posts: 2,312member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SpamSandwich View Post



    HBO seems to be the only forward-thinking channel out there.

     

    HBO has the clout that others just don't have to do this at this time.  HBO has been around for about as long as CableTV has existed.    Still you're paying the same $15 as a Cable subscriber that would get a bunch of LIVE HBO channels.   Maybe the cable company's think that's a good enough reason to not worry about it to much.  

  • Reply 11 of 16
    jbdragonjbdragon Posts: 2,312member

    Except you're paying the same price for a fraction of the channels!!!  No thanks!!!  

  • Reply 12 of 16
    jbdragonjbdragon Posts: 2,312member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by John.B View Post

     

    I wonder which shows on HBO will be excluded?

     

    http://arstechnica.com/business/2015/03/sling-tv-didnt-tell-users-its-newest-channels-come-with-restricted-content/

     


     

    That figures, so not much has really changed!!!

  • Reply 13 of 16
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SpamSandwich View Post



    HBO seems to be the only forward-thinking channel out there.

    It is known.

  • Reply 14 of 16
    dasanman69dasanman69 Posts: 13,002member
    justp1ayin wrote: »
    the shortest 3 month exclusive ever

    AT&T, and it's unlimited data deal for the iPad takes the crown.
  • Reply 15 of 16
    elehcdnelehcdn Posts: 389member
    Hmm ... I am still using my original grandfathered unlimited iPad data plan on my 4th device ... :D
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