In yet another move to appeal to cord cutters everywhere, CBS-owned Showtime announced that it will offer a stand-alone streaming service with Apple.
Simply called Showtime, the online offering will coincide with the premieres of “Masters of Sex” and “Ray Donovan” on July 12. Apple iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and Apple TV users will be able to subscribe to the service via the Showtime app for only $10.99 per month after a free 30-day trial period.
Perhaps considered the racier, tawdrier version of HBO (hard to imagine, I know), it’s seen as major move by many in the entertainment field to undercutting HBO Now‘s $14.99 per month price tag. Of course, Google announced just last week that HBO Now would be available via Android devices, so Team HBO is still kind of up a few.
Honestly, I love programs on both networks, and this just opens up a whole new channel of awesome-ness I’ve been denying myself because A) I try to limit myself to a few shows at a time so I get some daylight, and B) It cost too much to subscribe to both before.
In other words, I don’t think this will dissuade HBO viewers — it will just allow them to add Showtime to their portfolios and watch both channels instead of having to pick a favorite. What do you think?
