HBO to launch streaming service next year

In what looks like a move to rival Netflix, US cable and satellite TV network HBO has announced that it will begin offering a stand-alone streaming video service in 2015, according to a report in the Media Post.

Speaking at a Time Warner investor meeting on Wednesday, the company’s CEO, Richard Plepler, said that there is a “large and growing opportunity that should no longer be left untapped,” and that it was “time to remove all barriers to those who want HBO.”

The move, which hopes to target 10 million broadband-only homes in the US, will mean that consumers without a cable or satellite subscription will have access to HBO content from early next year, including Game of Thrones, The Sopranos and The Wire. An international rollout of the service is expected to happen over time.

Plepler added that the company will work with both current and new partners, and “use all means at [HBO’s] disposal” to go after the 80 million homes that do not have HBO.

The cost of the service and content that will be on offer is yet to be announced.