And then, the TV gods gave everyone HBO. After the launch of Apple TV and HBO Now yesterday, Sling TV announced today that it will also be offering HBO on its OTT service.
It was originally slated to go live today, but the launch date was pushed until this weekend. Sling subscribers should look for it by April 11, just before the premiere of “Game of Thrones” on Sunday.
Linear and on-demand content from HBO will be available with the Sling “Best of Live TV” package for an additional $15 a month. It will be available across all supported devices: Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick, current-generation Roku players and Roku TV models, Android and iOS devices, Xbox One, and Mac and PC.
Sling is also over-hauling their app for customers this week. They’re making changes to their servers to support heavier traffic (like on Sunday nights if everyone starts signing up for HBO), additional parental controls, and edited guides for easier navigation.
The Sling model is still cheaper than a cable bundle: the live package is $20 a month, plus the additional package is still under $50. But for how long? Eventually, Sling viewers are going to want Showtime and premium sports and to add on mini-packages that includes truTV so you can watch March Madness. Then it starts to add up.
We can cross that bridge when we come to for it. For now, if you’re still paying for your cable bundle, you should start to do some back of the napkin math. Linear, over the top HBO for $15 is what we call a deal in TV Land.