A week after news broke that some cable companies are talking to Netflix about bundling the service in with subscriptions comes news that Comcast is now offering HBO (and HBO Go) with its “Internet Plus” service in certain markets. According to a report on The Verge, the deal offers a 25 Mbps Internet connection, 20 channels of basic cable and VOD, Comcast’s Streampix streaming service, along with a subscription to HBO and HBO Go. DSL Reports, which originally broke the story with GigaOM, says the service will cost $40-$50 for the first year, then jump to as much as $80 per month after that.
That price puts it on par with similar services that are already offered by competing companies; for instance, AT&T bundles TV and Internet with its “movie package” that includes HBO for $84 per month for 12 months, but at 18 Mbps—though it presumably gets more expensive after the initial term.
The Comcast deal is only available to new customers, and only in certain areas. And it’s not quite the “Just give me HBO and nothing else, dammit” deal that cord-cutters everywhere long for, but it’s a step toward that seemingly inevitable future. In the meantime, cord-cutters will need to clear their schedules to torrent the Game Of Thrones season four premiere on May 18 next spring.