HBO's streaming service uses the TV Everywhere blueprint that parent company Time Warner developed in partnership with cable operator Comcast: extending the reach of pay TV programming by enabling channel subscribers to access content online, on demand, at no discrete incremental cost. That HBO is not the first premium network to launch such a service – Verizon already 'carries' the Epix online VoD service, for instance – demonstrates their willingness to collaborate with traditional platform operator partners to preserve the pay TV model online. While TV Everywhere is principally a response by pay TV operators designed to protect their position as 'gatekeepers' for premium content in the face of the growing threat posed by over-the-top video services, HBO is clearly equally keen to sustain the lucrative revenues generated by its 35m pay TV subscribers.

As well as providing on demand content on its own online service, HBO will be making this same content available via a Verizon portal, in line with one of the principles behind TV Everywhere to provide pay TV subscribers with multiple access points to content online. However, while operators are paying for the video streamed across their own online properties, what is not yet clear is who will be covering the cost of video consumed on the network site. For the time being, Verizon appears to be picking up the tab for HBO Go, with its Velocix-based CDN handling the streaming for the site, but it remains to be seen how the bill will be divided between other platform operators as the network site is opened up to their pay TV customers. Comcast looks favourite to be next, with its subscribers already having access to the same programming via the Xfinity section of its online video service Fancast.

Like Comcast – which launched a nationwide beta of Fancast Xfinity in December 2009 – Verizon has been quick to roll out TV Everywhere services. By positioning access to network sites like HBO Go and its own streaming service as a value-add but restricting it to dual play customers, Verizon will hope to up-sell customers to its bundled services. Comcast has employed the same strategy for Xfinity, although it has indicated it plans to open this up to TV-only customers by mid 2010.