There are two things to look forward to these days: we’re inching closer to baseball’s opening days and we’re about a month out from the launch of HBO Now. I’d almost forgotten since the announcement last fall.
The launch will coincide with the premiere of “Game of Thrones” and a possible launch partnership with Apple TV. The OTT service, not to be confused with its streaming app HBOGo, will cost $15 a month. How soon is too soon to call up your cable company and cancel your premium channels? Or not. Merrill Bar writes in Forbes that:
A $15/month OTT service is the company’s way of having its cake and eating it too. It’s a price that won’t rock a boat that’s already on the water, but that’s also low enough to convince people without cable or satellite service to sign up. Saying HBO is just worth $15/month because they’re HBO is a flimsy argument at best. While the likes of “Game of Thrones” and “Girls” may be worth that price, “The Newsroom” and “The Leftovers” certainly are not. $15/month was never about prestige, but it was also never about changing the status quo as some detractors to the price would like to believe. HBO Now’s price is all about the middle ground. If you already have HBO through your current provider, you aren’t going to drop it for the sake of signing up directly though the company; that’s all that matters… for now.
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It’s true that it’s maybe not worth the hassle, nor is it thriftier, to cancel if you’re a current subscriber. Who knows if everyone sharing HBO Go passwords in college dorm rooms will pull out their debit card and sign up.
It’s a toss up. I’m inclined to believe they will. Let’s face it, there’s volume on Netflix but not a whole lot of quality either. That doesn’t mean that “Friday Night Lights” hasn’t seen a resurgence in popularity. Then again, I’m one of the targeted demographics for the product. It’s the principle of the thing.
More than anything, the initial push will also be indicative of how important and interesting “Game of Thrones” is this season. And it’s a big step in uncoupling content providers from cable providers. That’s how Comcast and Time Warner get you. It will be a small win in the right direction for consumers. And then Netflix and HBO should just merge and we can all relax.