HBO Go leaves beta; execs mum on iPad version
updated 11:45 am EST, Wed February 17, 2010
HBO Go gives online viewing to TV subs
Premium cable channel HBO on Wednesday took its streaming video service HBO Go out of beta. The feature is meant as a complement to a TV subscription and gives those with an existing TV subscription access to about 600 hours of the station's shows through a web browser. The service is much larger than the previous HBO On Demand.
Verizon FiOS TV customers will get access to HBO Go as of this Thursday. Comcast subscribers already have access to HBO shows through Xfinity TV (Fancast), though not through the new implementation.
At an event discussing the rollout, HBO chief Eric Kessler floated the possibility of a mobile strategy but was relatively non-committal. Teamwork with Verizon opens the possibility of a mobile version for the carrier's phones. He notably didn't deny the possibility of an iPad version but also stopped short of pledging support. Like Hulu, HBO Go currently requires Flash and would need a conversion that bypasses the Adobe plugin entirely to reach Apple's handhelds as well as smartphones that don't yet have or won't get mobile Flash 10.1.
