It's a happy day for those living in the center of the Apple fan/HBO viewer Venn diagram.
Starting today, HBO Go allows users to stream programing from their iPhone or iPad to their television sets via Apple AirPlay. The bomb was dropped by HBO's President and COO Eric Kessler during the D: Dive Into Media conference, hosted by AllThingsD.
Though it's good news for Apple fans, the move begs one question: Why not just bring the service to Apple TV? Kessler's answer: We're working on it.
"We will get on Apple TV - there is no problem. These things take time," Kessler said during an onstage interview.
Comparing HBO to apples
The AirPlay feature will be added to today's update of the HBO Go iOS app as well as Cinemax's MAX Go App.
The updates continue HBO's slow march into new media, changing the landscape with all the speed of a prehistoric glacier. Last spring, HBO Go finally made it onto the Xbox 360, but PlayStation 3 owners are still wondering when it will come to their network.
Right now the devices you could stream HBO Go to are the iPad, iPhone, Kindle Fire, Roku, Samsung Smart TV's, Xbox 360, and Android tablets and smartphones. Of course, you can always watch it on your computer.
But according to Kessler, they will get around to all those other devices, eventually.
"Our long-term goal for Go is to be on all devices and all platforms," he said.
HBO slow
Though judging from some stats Kessler gave, HBO doesn't sound too motivated to embrace the plethora of devices users can get content on.
Kessler said 80 percent of HBO viewing is still done on traditional TV's, while another 16 percent is consumed through television on-demand, reported Engadget. Leaving only 2 percent - 3 percent of viewing on HBO GO.
Also, when asked during the session why HBO doesn't give in and offer its streaming service to those who don't subscribe to the premium channel via pay-TV, he said "the economics today don't support this," as reported by Engadget.
So it doesn't seem like HBO is looking to switch up its subscription model or availability in the near future. We may see some changes come to HBO GO, but probably not anytime soon.
Via AllThingsD, Engadget
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