Although the tolerance for daytime cable television, during the quarantine, has become a bit more tolerable, HBO is offering their non-subscribers the opportunity to watch something other than “Judge Judy”, “Family Feud”, and “The Price is Right”. As of now, HBO has lifted its monthly subscription fee of $14.99 during the COVID-19 pandemic, offering over 500 hours of unlimited content.
Some of the most popular HBO shows such as “The Sopranos”, “Veep”, and “Six Feet Under” have been made available to stream, giving fans a reason to re-watch some of their favorite shows without handing over their credit card information in reluctance. Additionally, over 20 movies and documentaries have been made available, with the new docu-series, “McMillions”, gaining massive popularity.
“[HBO is offering free-subscriptions] …to provide some entertainment relief for those doing their part to keep everyone safe and healthy in this time of social isolation,” said the media conglomerate in a statement made earlier this month.
Although many fan-favorites have become free-to-stream, there are still certain HBO shows that are only available to subscribers such as “Game of Thrones” and “Chernobyl”. However, the shows that are not free have still gained an increase in viewers, as many have decided to subscribe to HBO anyway, in order to watch their most popular shows.
“I wanted to start watching “Chernobyl” since I’ve been at home, but when I saw it wasn’t available, I figured I would just get a subscription for this month only,” said Tom Reihing, a 24-year-old criminal justice major from Howell.
The widely popular media corporation has also reported that they have received a 40% increase in overall streaming over the past two months, this increase includes HBO Now and HBO Go.
As of now, HBO has not announced when they will end their free streaming promotion that has been available during the current COVID-19. While some of the most popular HBO shows are still available, non-subscribers are still taking full advantage of this rare opportunity. Perhaps it is time to finally watch that HBO series you have always wanted to stream.