Tweet
The so-called Netflix killers built by HBO and Cinemax got a boost today as AT&T announced that customers of the company's U-verse service will have online access to shows from those pay TV services.
AT&T said that customers of U-verse, an Internet Protocol TV service that as of a year ago had 2 million subscribers, can log on to Hbogo.com and Maxgo.com and watch their shows via the Web--provided they also subscribe to HBO and Cinemax.
The Internet offerings from HBO and Cinemax, which launched this year, are in need of some good news. The momentum propelling Netflix, Hulu and the Web TV sector in general only appears to be building. In the quarter ended Sept. 30, Netflix added more than five million subscribers from the same period last year, while HBO's parent company, Time Warner, said earlier this month that it expects to lose 1.5 million HBO subscribers this year.
Nonetheless, HBO is sticking to the "TV Everywhere" strategy employed by cable and pay TV service, which calls for enabling subscribers to access their shows via the Web.
At a conference in Spain earlier this month, John Martin, Time Warner's chief financial officer, acknowledged the lackluster adoption of HBO Go but suggested that the numbers would rise once additional Internet service providers, such as AT&T, began to make the service available to their customers.
Meanwhile, there's been a lot of talking in the last week about how Netflix will need to start paying more to the studios and TV networks to stream their movies and shows. If price continues to be a factor, then the cable and pay TV services could be in better position to compete against Netflix by offering more online content.
Powered by WizardRSS | Best Membership Site Software
AT&T said that customers of U-verse, an Internet Protocol TV service that as of a year ago had 2 million subscribers, can log on to Hbogo.com and Maxgo.com and watch their shows via the Web--provided they also subscribe to HBO and Cinemax.
The Internet offerings from HBO and Cinemax, which launched this year, are in need of some good news. The momentum propelling Netflix, Hulu and the Web TV sector in general only appears to be building. In the quarter ended Sept. 30, Netflix added more than five million subscribers from the same period last year, while HBO's parent company, Time Warner, said earlier this month that it expects to lose 1.5 million HBO subscribers this year.
Nonetheless, HBO is sticking to the "TV Everywhere" strategy employed by cable and pay TV service, which calls for enabling subscribers to access their shows via the Web.
At a conference in Spain earlier this month, John Martin, Time Warner's chief financial officer, acknowledged the lackluster adoption of HBO Go but suggested that the numbers would rise once additional Internet service providers, such as AT&T, began to make the service available to their customers.
Meanwhile, there's been a lot of talking in the last week about how Netflix will need to start paying more to the studios and TV networks to stream their movies and shows. If price continues to be a factor, then the cable and pay TV services could be in better position to compete against Netflix by offering more online content.
Powered by WizardRSS | Best Membership Site Software