Amazon and HBO Announce Big Partnership

Select HBO shows are coming to Amazon Prime Instant Video, and HBO Go support is in the works for the Fire TV. 

Amazon and HBO have detailed a new multi-year licensing agreement that will bring a variety of HBO programing to the online retailer's streaming media service. This will make Prime Instant Video the exclusive online-only subscription source for several popular HBO series.

"HBO has produced some of the most groundbreaking, beloved and award-winning shows in television history, with more than 115 Emmys amongst the assortment of shows coming to Prime members next month," said Brad Beale, Director of Content Acquisition for Amazon. "HBO original content is some of the most-popular across Amazon Instant Video—our customers love watching these shows. Now Prime members can enjoy a collection of great HBO shows on an unlimited basis, at no additional cost to their Prime membership."

The agreement begins on May 21, giving Prime Instant Video members access to every season of select shows like 'The Sopranos,' 'The Wire,' 'Deadwood,' 'Rome,' 'Six Feet Under,' 'Eastbound & Down,' 'Enlightened,' and 'Flight of the Conchords'; acclaimed miniseries like 'Angels in America,' 'Band of Brothers,' 'John Adams,' 'The Pacific' and 'Parade’s End'; early seasons of series such as 'Boardwalk Empire,' 'Treme' and 'True Blood'; original movies like 'Game Change,' 'Too Big To Fail' and 'You Don’t Know Jack'; documentaries including the 'Autopsy' and 'Iceman' series, 'Ghosts of Abu Ghraib' and 'When the Levees Broke'; and comedy specials from Lewis Black, Ellen DeGeneres, Louis CK and Bill Maher. In addition, current seasons of all of the show listed above and early seasons of more shows like 'Veep,' 'Girls' and 'The Newsroom' will become available in the future.

Finally, the two companies also announced plans to bring HBO Go to the Amazon Fire TV. The cable giant's streaming service is expected to launch on the Fire TV by the end of the year. "As owners of our original programming, we have always sought to capitalize on that investment. Given our longstanding relationship with Amazon, we couldn't think of a better partner to entrust with this valuable collection," said Glenn Whitehead, Executive Vice President of Business and Legal Affairs, who along with Schreger headed up HBO's negotiating team. "We're also excited to bring HBO GO to Amazon's Fire TV. The features like unified voice search will provide a compelling experience for HBO customers."

The Amazon Fire TV currently retails for $99. You can check out our full review here. Prime Instant Video is available on a variety of streaming devices and smart TVs. The service is part of Amazon Prime and currently costs $99 per year. With this new deal, HBO joins a growing library of exclusive Prime Instant Video streaming content, including Fox's '24,' the BBC series 'Orphan Black,' FX's 'The Americans,' and NBC's 'Hannibal.' 

Source: Amazon

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