Sling TV announced today that customers of its over-the-top streaming service will be able to purchase access to HBO starting today, just in time for the season premiere of “Game of Thrones” on April 12.
Users will be able to add the premium cable channel to their subscription for $15 a month, on top of the service’s $20 a month base price. For that money, they’ll get access to three streams of live HBO content and a catalog of on-demand video that mirrors what HBO offers its other customers.
It’s good news for people who don’t own an Apple device and want to stream HBO content without paying for a cable subscription. HBO Now, the over-the-top streaming service dedicated to HBO content, is currently only available on iOS, Apple TV, PC and Mac. Sling TV, by comparison, is available on devices including Amazon Fire TV, Roku players, and the Xbox One.
In addition to the programming updates, Sling TV also updated its applications with upgrades that should reduce load on its servers. That should help it weather heavy load from events like March Madness (which led to spotty performance) and the “Game of Thrones” season premiere. The update also brought support for parental controls across all the Sling TV channels that lets adults control the ratings of shows their kids can watch.
It will be interesting to see what effect (if any) this launch has on Sling TV’s adoption. Offering cross-platform support for HBO may draw more consumers into using the service than would ordinarily try it out.
