Hooray for HBO. The Time Warner owned channel is finally embracing the Web with an on demand service called HBO on Broadband. The HBO offering will put episodes of HBO programs online sometimes within five minutes of the show originally airing. Similar on demand offerings have always been available through cable and satellite companies, but on demand access to current episodes can sometimes take days or weeks.
The HBO service also includes a live streaming feed of HBO content in the Eastern Time zone, which is nice for the west coast compadres who want their HBO fix and do not want to wait three hours.
Too Restrictive?
Unfortunately, the service is very DRM-restricted, so the videos will be unable to be burned to DVD, ripped to portable media players and such. Downloaded videos will expire after after four weeks. HBO on Demand will also require a separate PC application that is needed to download a stream content.
To use HBO on Broadband either your broadband ISP will have to offer it to you or you'll have to be an existing HBO subscriber. To watch HBO content you'll still need to be connected to the Internet - regardless if you have already downloaded.
The service has begun its first pilot program for Time Warner Cable Internet subscribers in Green Bay and Milwaukee, Wisconsin as a free add-on for those already subscribing to HBO. Maybe this will give Brett Favre and the rest of the Green Bay Packers something to do with all of their newfound free time. Zing.
I for one welcome the new explosion of on demand style of services, online or with cable and satellite providers. The control of video watching has been shifted and placed in the hands of the customers, and not the schedule makers.
We shall see if HBO has a compelling enough offering to stem the tide of free HBO content on P-to-P networks.
"To watch HBO content you'll still need to be connected to the Internet - regardless if you have already downloaded."
Actually, no, that's not true. Everything I've read says that once downloaded, you don't need to be connected - and you can take the programming with you on a laptop.
And my understanding is that some programs can be kept for up to TWELVE weeks:
http://www.dvddossier.com/2008/01/hbo-broadband.html
"HBO on Demand" is delivered to your TV set by your cable company (through a set top box) and requires no internet connection.