In a move that goes against its own strict content pricing structure, Apple Inc. has finally bowed to the resistance of Time Warner and secured the delivery of Home Box Office (HBO) content to the popular iTunes Store.
Apple breaks its pricing structure to secure HBO downloads. Image: HBO.
Available as of yesterday (Tuesday, May 13), HBO hits such as The Sopranos, Sex and the City, and The Wire are open for customer download on iTunes -- but not for the usual $1.99 USD per episode charge rate.
Specifically, in successfully getting its hands on HBO content, which has long been out of reach due to Time Warner’s flexible pricing demands, Apple has agreed that HBO content downloads will be set at either $1.99 USD or $2.99 USD per episode.
According to Eddy Cue, vice president of iTunes, customers will still be able to download full seasons of the higher-priced shows and remain below the total price they would be expected to pay if purchasing a complete DVD box set. Some of those $2.99 USD per episode shows include the likes of Deadwood, The Sopranos, and Rome.
By finally bringing Time Warner’s HBO programming into the fold, Cue outlines that NBC Universal is now the only major media player not delivering its content through the iTunes Store.
NBC Universal was initially offering its television shows through iTunes but abruptly pulled its participation in the latter part of 2007 due to a growing dissatisfaction with Apple’s rigid pricing policy.
NBC has since moved its downloadable catalogue to Microsoft’s rival (and more flexible) online media store, the Zune Marketplace. It remains to be seen whether Apple’s willingness to assign more flexible pricing to HBO’s programming leads to NBC reopening negotiations with the iTunes Store ahead of a return of its content.
Despite the loss of NBC Universal, the Apple iTunes Store currently offers around 150 million downloadable (and regionally restricted) TV episodes spread across 800 different shows.
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