In a big win over rival Netflix, Amazon has formed a deal with HBO to run a selection of its shows on its Prime Instant Video service.
The deal will see Amazon offer its subscribers past seasons of the premium cable’s originals like “The Sopranos” and “The Wire.”
Terms of the deal were not disclosed; it covers only the U.S. Under the agreement, Amazon has exclusive SVOD rights for select HBO programming. That includes full seasons of “The Sopranos,” “Six Feet Under,” “The Wire,” “Big Love,” “Deadwood,” “Eastbound & Down,” “Family Tree,” “Enlightened,” “Treme,” early seasons of “Boardwalk Empire” and “True Blood,” as well as miniseries like “Band of Brothers” and “John Adams.”
The deal marks the first time HBO programming has been licensed to an online-only subscription streaming service.
The move is also a big win for Amazon in its rivalry with Netflix, the currently market leader in streaming In the UK it was recently revealed that Amazon’s Prime Instant Video service (previously Lovefilm Instant in the UK) dropped subscribers in the last six months from 8% of UK online users to 6%, according to Decipher’s bi-annual media consumption tracker, Media Bug.
In contrast, Netflix membership is growing alongside user loyalty to the online video service, with figures showing a membership growth in the last six months of 10 per cent to 14 per cent of UK online users now with a subscription.
All the programming covered under the licensing deal with Amazon will remain on all HBO platforms, including HBO Go.