The term cord-cutters is broadly used for people who don’t subscribe to a TV provider and instead choose to get their television fix from a variety of online options, including but not limited to Hulu and Netflix. Granted that services like these have drawbacks since live programming is not beamed over them. Then there are services like HBO Go which allow pay-TV subscribers to access content online. Next year HBO will be making an even bigger move to appease cord-cutters, it will offer an online-only subscription service.
What this would mean is that subscribers would no longer be required to pay for HBO through their pay-TV provider. According to the cable network’s Chairman and CEO Richard Plepler this service will be “standalone” and will “remove all barriers to those who want HBO.”
Despite saying that the service will come next year Plepler didn’t reveal many specifics. So we don’t know how much it will cost and what devices it will support. No word on what sort of content will be accessible through the service and whether or not subscribers will have to return to their pay-TV for latest episodes.
While the U.S. launch is scheduled for next year Plepler did recognize that taking HBO online in this manner will create an opportunity to bring in international customers as well who often have to resort to piracy to get the latest content from HBO.