Skip to main content

Cable shmable: HBO will land on Sling TV in time for Game of Thrones

Dish’s new Internet TV service, Sling TV, added more firepower today with breaking news that the service will be launching live and on-demand versions of premium network HBO for an extra $15/month — just in time for Game of Thrones.

Today’s announcement is just the latest offering for the service that continues to look more and more like a viable alternative to traditional cable — but make no mistake — HBO is a big get. The coveted addition comes out of a new distribution deal Dish Network signed with HBO, as well as Turner network, both of which have been in the works for months, according to Deadline.

Recommended Videos

For potential users of Dish’s new Sling TV service, which tempts cord-cutters with a $20/month starting price for a wide selection of live channels, the new deal adds an easy way to land HBO’s acclaimed catalog of programming without the need for a traditional cable or satellite package.

In fact, it could be argued that Sling TV’s deal will be a threat to HBO’s own $15 standalone streaming app, HBO Now, which will launch around the same time in a semi-exclusive deal with Apple products. Sling TV is available on several products outside of Apple’s tight-knit product family, including Amazon’s Fire TV and Fire TV Streaming Stick, Roku’s robust family of streaming devices, Xbox One, as well as Android devices and PCs — all of those in addition to Apple’s iPhone, iPad, and Macs.

The service is not yet available for the Apple TV — and considering Apple is rumored to be working on its own Web TV offering, it likely never will be.

The addition of HBO is welcome news for patrons of Dish’s new service — especially considering the recent bout of disappointment as users reported certain programming is blocked on channels like A&E due to issues with distribution rights. As we’re finding out, the path from traditional services to streaming TV is not without its bumps and blunders.

But adopters of Sling TV can take heart in more choices than ever, as HBO adds to channels like ESPN, TBS, TNT, and many others that are seemingly unaffected by the programming conflicts. The service hosts 20 channels in all for $20 in its core “Best of Live TV” package.

With HBO on board, users can now get a high-powered selection of live and on-demand content over the web for a total of $35, with no strings attached — still very competitive compared to basic cable packages with a premium add-on network.

Dish hasn’t yet announced exact release dates, but the new seasons of HBO’s Game of Thrones and the new hit comedy Silicon Valley will be ready to fire up upon their premieres April 12.

Ryan Waniata
Former Home Theater & Entertainment Editor
Ryan Waniata is a multi-year veteran of the digital media industry, a lover of all things tech, audio, and TV, and a…
Sling TV celebrates the holidays with a rate increase that goes live today
Sling TV on a TV.

Happy holidays! Sling TV got you a present, and it's a $6-per-month price increase. As we reported last month, today marks the beginning of the new pricing for all of Sling's packages -- Sling Orange, Sling Blue, and the combo Sling Orange and Blue package. Costs per month for the three packages are now $46, $51, and $66, respectively, with half off your first month.

Sling attributes the increase to rising costs of programming "well above the price of inflation." It also points out "these increases are industry wide" and "Sling continues to be the most affordable option with offerings more than $20 less per month versus other providers." It's worth noting that Sling has been adding features throughout 2024, including 4K streaming of major sporting events such as the MLB All-Star Game, postseason, and World Series, the 2024 Olympics in Paris, and the U.S. Open in select major markets.

Read more
Happy Holidays: You’re going to pay more for Sling TV in December
Sling TV app icon on Apple TV.

Just in time for the holidays, Sling TV has announced that it will be increasing its prices by $6 per month, starting on December 20, 2024. The new pricing affects Sling Orange, Sling Blue, and Sling Orange and Blue packages. Sling's last countrywide price increase was in 2022, however, it increased its prices again for select markets in March 2023.

This latest price hike, which Sling TV attributes to the ever-rising cost of programming, brings the cost of Sling Orange to $46 per month, Sling Blue to $51 per month, and Sling Orange and Blue to $66 per month.

Read more
Netflix’s hit series Arcane is TV’s best Game of Thrones successor
Jinx wears a hood in Arcane season 2.

Ever since Game of Thrones ended, Hollywood's biggest streamers and TV networks have worked hard to try and replicate its success. Studios like Netflix and Amazon have invested huge loads of money into high-profile fantasy shows like The Witcher, The Wheel of Time, and The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, while HBO has attempted to keep the Thrones train going with a prequel series, House of the Dragon, and multiple other in-development spinoffs as well.

Try as they might, though, none of these series have been able to successfully recreate the same alchemy of violence, character development, fantasy worldbuilding, and moment-to-moment unpredictability that made Thrones not only so watchable, but downright addictive. The only show that has come even remotely close to doing that is — shockingly enough — Arcane.

Read more