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Amazon Strikes Exclusive Deal to Stream HBO Content

We've increasingly seen a fracturing of streaming video content as more and more companies strike exclusive deals for content, resulting in consumer confusion as to what content is available on what service. In a move that continues that trend yet expands HBO content availability at the same time, HBO has struck an exclusive deal to allow Amazon to offer older HBO series on the company's Prime streaming service.

While HBO's catalog of older shows like Deadwood (my personal favorite) will soon be available on Amazon, newer shows like Game of Thrones will only be made available three years after they air on HBO. While it's not the standalone streaming HBO service everyone wants but HBO refuses to deliver, it's at least a step in the right direction.

Correction: Some new programming will be included three years after air, though the deal apparently excludes ultra-popular and highly-pirated programs like Game of Thrones. It's also worth noting that Bernstein Research estimates this deal will cost Amazon somewhere between $200 and $400 million for the life of the arrangement.
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Papageno
join:2011-01-26
Portland, OR

Papageno

Member

Three years? Pffft

Good luck with that, HBO.

TechyDad
Premium Member
join:2001-07-13
USA

TechyDad

Premium Member

Re: Three years? Pffft

Three years is ridiculous, but it is better than HBO's previous stance of "These Shows Will Never Go Online EVER!!!!!" (Which translated into "If you want these shows online, even if you want to pay for them, your only option is to pirate them.")

Perhaps in a year or so, they'll ease their 3 year requirement to 2 years, and then to 1 year. Until then, there are a bunch of HBO shows that I haven't watched - and wasn't going to sign up to HBO to get - that I might actually get interested in now.

Mr Guy
@charter.com

Mr Guy

Anon

Re: Three years? Pffft

said by TechyDad:

Three years is ridiculous, but it is better than HBO's previous stance of "These Shows Will Never Go Online EVER!!!!!" (Which translated into "If you want these shows online, even if you want to pay for them, your only option is to pirate them.")

The problem with that is in 3 years one will have already pirated these shows and thus have them in their collection so it doesn't matter if you can stream them on Amazon.

Brian_M
join:2004-06-19
Manchester, GA

1 recommendation

Brian_M

Member

Re: Three years? Pffft

Not all of us are pirates (or pirate everything, I'm down to Top Gear UK). Good content is still good even 3 years later ~ heck I just watched Lost (2004) for the first time about 6 months ago. I'm in the middle of Dexter (2006) right now...

I don't have a local collection anymore because it was never watched, then the HDD failed. I just never bothered to replace anything. If the internet is down, I'm perfectly happy to read a book.

ArgMeMatey
join:2001-08-09
Milwaukee, WI

ArgMeMatey

Member

Re: Three years? Pffft

said by Brian_M:

Good content is still good even 3 years later
...
If the internet is down, I'm perfectly happy to read a book.

Happy to meet a fellow heretic around these parts.

There's very little media that I need to see anywhere remotely close to "right now." Including the news. Shows to see before I die? In the whole scheme of life, if media is that important, what else makes my life worth living?

It used to be that we discussed TV story lines and predictions during breaks around the water cooler at the office. Now, everybody just checks their stocks or peers into their smartphone, if they have a break at all. And when did that water cooler disappear? Was it the cost-cutting in early 2009? Finally, office? What office? You mean the coffee shop or the library?
millerja01a
join:2005-10-03
Durham, NC

millerja01a

Member

Re: Three years? Pffft

Not everyone does what you do.

As for pirating. If content providers make it a fair price without the need to get a monthly sub, the market will respond.

Bottom line, no one feels the need to pay for this stuff. When people want something of value to *them*, they will pay for it.

TechyDad
Premium Member
join:2001-07-13
USA

TechyDad to Brian_M

Premium Member

to Brian_M
Not a HBO series, but I'm currently enjoying the Clone Wars series on Netflix. The season I'm up to originally aired in 2010. I don't watch it and think "Ick, this content is four years old", I think "this is a good show that I missed the first time it was aired."

I'll even give an older example. My boys were watching an old episode of Fetch: With Ruff Ruffman from 2006 or so. One of the episodes involved some kids trying to wrap chocolates on an assembly line. It reminded me of the classic I Love Lucy episode so I found *that* on Amazon Prime and showed it to my youngest son. He was laughing hysterically at a show that aired in 1952 - over 60 years ago.

Shows don't automatically turn to junk just because they are older and people don't fall into the simple buckets of "will never be interested in X and thus won't watch it online years later", "paid to watch X on HBO and thus won't be interested in it online years later", and "pirated X and thus won't be interested in it online years later".

alg
Passionately apathetic
Premium Member
join:2001-04-10
Houston, TX

alg to Brian_M

Premium Member

to Brian_M
said by Brian_M:

Not all of us are pirates (or pirate everything, I'm down to Top Gear UK). Good content is still good even 3 years later ~ heck I just watched Lost (2004) for the first time about 6 months ago. I'm in the middle of Dexter (2006) right now...

I don't have a local collection anymore because it was never watched, then the HDD failed. I just never bothered to replace anything. If the internet is down, I'm perfectly happy to read a book.

Similar situation here - I'm catching up on shows on both Netflix and Amazon that are new to me anyway.

The HBO deal will make the difference for me to keep Prime. Just last week I was seriously thinking about not renewing it and just going with Netflix.
TheRogueX
join:2003-03-26
Springfield, MO

TheRogueX to Mr Guy

Member

to Mr Guy
In three years you could have already bought these shows on DVD or Blu-Ray.
BlueC
join:2009-11-26
Minneapolis, MN

1 recommendation

BlueC

Member

Step in the right direction

Nice to see HBO making this move. Even better for Amazon, as this gives them an edge over Netflix.

Perhaps we will see more of this from other content owners. It certainly confirms the pattern of streaming providers getting better content.

buzz_4_20
join:2003-09-20
Dover, NH
(Software) Sophos UTM Home Edition
Ruckus R310

buzz_4_20

Member

Re: Step in the right direction

Exclusive deals are a step in the WRONG direction.
It forces consumers to choose between offerings or spend more for less.
It's also more complicated to access a complete suite of shows, which makes piracy a more viable option.

We need all the content in ONE place if we really want to push back against piracy.
HiDesert
join:2008-08-17

HiDesert

Member

Re: Step in the right direction

said by buzz_4_20:

We need all the content in ONE place if we really want to push back against piracy.

Not going to happen. They will not jeopardize their pay TV model. It will always be fragmented and this is done intentionally. Our senate is bought by the lobbyist to keep this carriage system in place and thus price increases galore. There is no regulation. As crazy as it seems, the only option we have left is to cancel our CATV subscription by the millions. History has proven this one fact to be true 100%.

NYDude25
join:2007-08-23
Massapequa, NY

NYDude25 to buzz_4_20

Member

to buzz_4_20
We already have all the content in one place, and that's on cable TV.

PaulHikeS2
join:2003-03-06
Fitchburg, MA

1 recommendation

PaulHikeS2

Member

Re: Step in the right direction

said by NYDude25:

We already have all the content in one place, and that's on cable TV.

Really? House of Cards? Orange is the New Black?

cableties
Premium Member
join:2005-01-27

cableties

Premium Member

Re: Step in the right direction

Actually, House of Cards is coming to Comcast on demand so, yes, cableTV...

PaulHikeS2
join:2003-03-06
Fitchburg, MA

PaulHikeS2

Member

Re: Step in the right direction

Cool, thanks - maybe I'll cancel my Netflix subscription

SimbaSeven
I Void Warranties
join:2003-03-24
Billings, MT
·StarLink

SimbaSeven

Member

Re: Step in the right direction

said by PaulHikeS2:

Cool, thanks - maybe I'll cancel my Netflix subscription

I sure hope that's sarcasm I sense.

"I'll cancel my Netflix subscription so I can get a cable package that's 10x higher so I can watch one particular show, which is ALSO on Netflix."
BlueC
join:2009-11-26
Minneapolis, MN

BlueC to buzz_4_20

Member

to buzz_4_20
I'd rather see an exclusive deal with one streaming provider, versus no streaming at all.

So yes, this is a step in the right direction, albeit not perfect.

You won't find all content available in one place. The model would be too expensive and would not attract enough subscribers. Having more than one streaming subscription is simply a reality going forward, and it doesn't break the bank (considering Amazon Prime is used for the shipping benefits by a lot of consumers, this isn't costing people much more). Amazon has a good thing going IMHO.

Mr Guy
@charter.com

Mr Guy

Anon

Re: Step in the right direction

said by BlueC:

So yes, this is a step in the right direction,

if you need to go 100 miles and you take 1 step per year day a step doesn't mean much for a LONG time
ncted
join:2010-10-25
Durham, NC

ncted to buzz_4_20

Member

to buzz_4_20
said by buzz_4_20:

We need all the content in ONE place if we really want to push back against piracy.

That is called a monopoly, and we already have enough of those.

passingby
@oaklandcc.edu

passingby to buzz_4_20

Anon

to buzz_4_20
Better yet then, don't offer them at all. Does that work for you?

Mr Guy
@charter.com

Mr Guy to BlueC

Anon

to BlueC
said by BlueC:

Nice to see HBO making this move. Even better for Amazon, as this gives them an edge over Netflix.

Perhaps we will see more of this from other content owners. It certainly confirms the pattern of streaming providers getting better content.

what edge? So I have to wait until 2017 to see this seasons episodes of GoT? Bad enough HBO makes you wait 9 months to get it on blu-ray/DVD. No wonder their shit is pirated. I need to buy HBO stock, they apparently make so much money they can piss away potential profits but allowing piracy to flourish.
BlueC
join:2009-11-26
Minneapolis, MN

BlueC

Member

Re: Step in the right direction

said by Mr Guy :

what edge? So I have to wait until 2017 to see this seasons episodes of GoT? Bad enough HBO makes you wait 9 months to get it on blu-ray/DVD. No wonder their shit is pirated. I need to buy HBO stock, they apparently make so much money they can piss away potential profits but allowing piracy to flourish.

You say this because of one show they chose not to allow streaming?

HBO has a lot of great series, a large portion of which they are allowing Amazon to stream next month.

Considering Netflix has zero HBO content, this in fact does give Amazon an edge.

Mr Guy
@charter.com

Mr Guy

Anon

Re: Step in the right direction

said by BlueC:

You say this because of one show they chose not to allow streaming?

HBO has a lot of great series, a large portion of which they are allowing Amazon to stream next month.

Considering Netflix has zero HBO content, this in fact does give Amazon an edge.

NONE of their current shows will be allowed to stream. Also it's not an edge to amazon because I can get all the old shows AND new shows via HBOGo anyway.
BlueC
join:2009-11-26
Minneapolis, MN

BlueC

Member

Re: Step in the right direction

said by Mr Guy :

NONE of their current shows will be allowed to stream. Also it's not an edge to amazon because I can get all the old shows AND new shows via HBOGo anyway.

However, you can't have HBOGo without an HBO subscription, which requires a cable/satellite subscription.

You cannot compare HBOGo to Amazon/Netflix.

They're still going to offer a lot of their older series, which adds a lot of good content.

When it comes to content, it's not always about new shows, there is still a heavy interest in older series (as not all consumers have viewed them, and the ones that have like to rewatch).

The Sopranos
The Wire
Band of Brothers
The Pacific
Oz
Treme
etc....

These are all high-end content, normally only available for purchase or via an HBO subscription (which requires cable/satellite).

Brian_M
join:2004-06-19
Manchester, GA

Brian_M

Member

Re: Step in the right direction

I'm a perfect example ~ I have NEVER had an HBO subscription. Too costly. Now I'm streaming only and have never seen any of the shows mentioned ~ heck I only vaguely know what 3 of them are (Sopranos = mob/crime drama, Band of Brothers = war drama and Oz is something to do with prison). Would I watch them? You better believe it... glad I already have a Prime account. This will be the first time I'll have ever watched HBO content (well, I torented GoT s01e01 and turned it off before finishing because it was just awful... I'd rather remember the books with fondness ~ no threat of me pirating more of that show).

Mr Guy
@charter.com

Mr Guy

Anon

Re: Step in the right direction

said by Brian_M:

This will be the first time I'll have ever watched HBO content (well, I torented GoT s01e01 and turned it off before finishing because it was just awful... I'd rather remember the books with fondness ~ no threat of me pirating more of that show).

So if I read the first chapter of the first book and stopped reading because "it sucked" would you say I made a fair assessment of the books? Um...nope.
Mr Guy

Mr Guy to BlueC

Anon

to BlueC
said by BlueC:

However, you can't have HBOGo without an HBO subscription, which requires a cable/satellite subscription.

Unless you know someone that has HBO and they let you use their password.
TheRogueX
join:2003-03-26
Springfield, MO

TheRogueX to BlueC

Member

to BlueC
It doesn't give Amazon an edge. If the content was FREE on Amazon, maybe, but you have to rent/purchase the episodes. I'll be able to buy the shows on Blu-Ray like 2 years before Amazon will have it, and probably for cheaper than the per-episode rate (or even the full-season rate) on Amazon.

Oh, and I'll have them on disc and can watch them anywhere, anytime, even without an internet connection.
BlueC
join:2009-11-26
Minneapolis, MN

BlueC

Member

Re: Step in the right direction

said by TheRogueX:

It doesn't give Amazon an edge. If the content was FREE on Amazon, maybe, but you have to rent/purchase the episodes. I'll be able to buy the shows on Blu-Ray like 2 years before Amazon will have it, and probably for cheaper than the per-episode rate (or even the full-season rate) on Amazon.

Oh, and I'll have them on disc and can watch them anywhere, anytime, even without an internet connection.

Amazon Prime = Free, if you have the Amazon Prime subscription.

tshirt
Premium Member
join:2004-07-11
Snohomish, WA

tshirt to Mr Guy

Premium Member

to Mr Guy
said by Mr Guy :

No wonder their shit is pirated.

You need to recognize that the piracy rate is quite small compared to their total CATV (and now AMAZON) income, and that they no only a small percentage of pirates will ever become legit customers anyway, no matter how cheap they make it.
said by Mr Guy :

I need to buy HBO stock,

Awesome idea, then, maybe you could actual afford the service you desire, and you would understand why the company and stockholders will go to great lengths to protect their rightful income.

This isn't the public library (which is not FREE either, it's paid for by taxpayers) and if you steal materials from this one private security will work with the police. (prosecutor/courts) to protect their business/ inventory/ tax-base.
Everyone else has skin in the game, get you some too.

•••••
HiDesert
join:2008-08-17

1 recommendation

HiDesert

Member

Can't win.

If you want HBO you have to sub to CATV or SAT which has endless carriage increases and tied to very expensive sports channel carriages whether you watch sports or not. Its fragmented for a reason. They want us to pay 80 dollars a month or more for CATV or SAT. The industry model rarely is a fit for the customer but is full of compromises. Netflix probably the best of the lot and that does not say much. The price/value hit my threshold many years back and I cut the cord. I've saved over 5000 dollars so far and don't miss it. I get on the bike and run now. I refuse to cave into a couch zombie and pay bi annual rate hikes so Brian Roberts can make 26 million a year and buy time warner for 45 billion dollars. People need to cancel in droves to send a message to these monopolies. Anyone that is really interested in HBO content will laugh at the three year wait for newer content. Pathetic at best.

Probably the main reason HBO is doing this is to drum up a few bucks from Amazon since many people cancel their HBO once their promos run out. That's the first thing to go when people scale back their services to try to manage the out of control price increases.

•••••••
etaadmin
join:2002-01-17
united state

etaadmin

Member

Exclusive deals are bad for the industry.

With all these exclusive deals we will be paying more for what cable offers.

Instead of one cable provider we will need to subscribe to Amazon, Netflix, Hulu and all the others... plus the internet connection.
HiDesert
join:2008-08-17

HiDesert

Member

Re: Exclusive deals are bad for the industry.

Not exactly. Most people will have the internet connection anyway. Its almost a utility at this point. You can sub to hulu, netflix, and prime for around 270 dollars a year. CATV has spiraled out of control that your looking at paying at least 700 dollars a year without any premium channels and not even in the top tier at that. Its still far cheaper to sub to a bunch of streaming services then to sub to Comcrap etc.. Once that promo ends the price basically doubles.
BlueC
join:2009-11-26
Minneapolis, MN

BlueC

Member

Re: Exclusive deals are bad for the industry.

Not to mention this included with Amazon Prime. A lot of consumers already pay this subscription for the shipping benefits. Naturally there will be a good number of people with a minimum of Netflix and Amazon Prime. Both subscriptions together works out to be less than $20/month. That's cheap compared to Cable, plus you get the benefits of free 2-day shipping (and inexpensive overnight) with Amazon.

NetflixAmaz
@comcast.net

NetflixAmaz

Anon

Netflix and Amazon Prime make a nice streaming pkg

Having Netflix and Amazon Prime streaming makes a very nice package for a very reasonable price. I pay $8/mo for Netflix and $79/yr for Amazon Prime. Even when these prices rise for next yr, it is still a good deal. And Amazon's price includes free shipping for all online purchases which is why I have Amazon Prime membership. If you buy a lot online from Amazon.com and save all those shipping costs, the streaming is essentially a free benefit.

Between the 2 streaming vendors, there is tons of free TV shows and movies available, especially if like me, you like watching old TV series and old movies.
malletto
join:2009-01-03
Purcellville, VA

malletto

Member

Re: Netflix and Amazon Prime make a nice streaming pkg

Plus you can have 4 other people on the prime account. Sign up family members and make them pay their part of the amazon prime. Drops the price even lower.
biochemistry
Premium Member
join:2003-05-09
92361

biochemistry

Premium Member

CYE

No Curb Your Enthusiasm which could use another season btw?
existenz
join:2014-02-12

existenz

Member

Re: CYE

Rome and Carnivale also ended too early. Would be good to see those on Amazon.

Packeteers
Premium Member
join:2005-06-18
Forest Hills, NY

Packeteers

Premium Member

current season too?

does this apply to hbo library of stuff, or the current season too?
i mean if a GoT episode is on Sunday night, will i be able to stream
it on amazon fire sunday night, monday night? or 6 months later,
when they release it on BlueRay.

Mr Guy
@charter.com

Mr Guy

Anon

Re: current season too?

which part of "3 years after is on HBO" didn't you understand?
Mr Guy

Mr Guy

Anon

HBO still doesn't get it

They don't even offer day after air purchases. They make you wait 9-10 months. Other popular shows like The Walking Dead you can by an episode the day after it airs.
DigitalManny
join:2014-01-08
Glendale, CA

DigitalManny

Member

Netflix fails again

They raise the price soon and they keep on removing everything look at the Anime section and Amazon Prime raises the price and keep on adding more stuff now HBO must suck for Netflix they probably would fade out like Blockbuster soon.

•••••
HiDesert
join:2008-08-17

HiDesert

Member

Cord Shaving

HBO and Showtime have lost 6 percent market share in the last two years. At the same time, the likes of Netflix etc.. have shown increases in market share of around 4 percent. This is the ONLY reason HBO struck a deal with prime. Too many folks decided to "shave" their out of control CATV bills and HBO and Showtime were the first ones to go. If enough people cut the cord all together we might see CATV and SAT come back to reality and adjust the insane carriage rip offs and carriage extortion's that is common place now. Disney of course is the worst violator of carriage extortion.

•••

cableties
Premium Member
join:2005-01-27

cableties

Premium Member

If HBOGo is any example...

...of HBO's failure to anticipate distribution, I hope Amazon solves the "sorry, we are experiencing a server issue. Please try again later" problem.

(See final episode of 1st season of true Detectives, or the season opener of Game Of Thrones...for how "lacking" in available bandwidth HBOGo servers work...)
HiDesert
join:2008-08-17

HiDesert

Member

The model is starting to crumble

The way I see it, this is a sign that CATV and SAT prices have reached a price threshold. People will only take so much. HBO and Showtime are losing subscribers. This is fact. They are making a deal with Amazon to slow down the bleeding. Its not entirely their fault. Its just that CATV has seen rocketing price increases for so many years that something has to give. I truly believe that the content providers don't get it. They will keep up the carriage hikes until one day, several million cut the cord and then they will wonder what happened? They will blame piracy no doubt.

jmn1207
Premium Member
join:2000-07-19
Sterling, VA

jmn1207

Premium Member

Re: The model is starting to crumble

This was a relatively safe play by HBO. This new move won't have much of an impact on cable TV subscriber numbers, but HBO will see millions from Amazon. I can't see too many people dropping HBO from pay TV in place of the Amazon offering of content. Not much of a gamble, just a safe side bet.

IPPlanMan
Holy Cable Modem Batman
join:2000-09-20
Washington, DC

IPPlanMan

Member

The cracks are forming...

HBO's losing its mojo if it needs to do this... Only a matter of time before it crumbles.

Probitas
@teksavvy.com

Probitas

Anon

discs are cheaper and legal

Save more money buying a box set than even paying for netflix, on a per year basis for one show. This is why these dinosaurs are dying out. They haven't learned how to walk, and are still swimming in goo.

KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium Member
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
Netgear WNDR3700v2
Zoom 5341J

KrK

Premium Member

I think eventually Streaming from 3rd parties will be crushed....

... and will be back into the hands of just a few "PayTV" distributors. It may be delivered via IP but the net result will be the same.... the only two viable options will go back to being pay through the nose for content you don't want as well as that you do, or, Pirate what you want (and risk imprisonment and HUGE fines.)

Sigh.