Telenet has become ‘Home of the HBO’ after renewing its deal with the US producer and pay channel until 2018.
The cablenet will have exclusivity on HBO content in Flanders, adding a selection of popular series such as Band of Brothers, Generation Kill and The Sopranos (pictured) from the HBO archive to its premium offer. The deal also include films from HBO subsidiary Cinemax.
Original programming will debut on Telenet shortly after their US premiere. Shows such as Game of Thrones are made available less than a week after their US screening. Telenet and HBO are working closely to shorten this gap with an aim to air episodes within a day of their US premiere.
This collaboration also allows Telenet to offer several complete boxsets from the HBO archive via premium channels Rex and Rio.
Jeroen Bronselaer, Telenet’s VP Product Entertainment said: “We note that the series of movies and HBO are very much appreciated by our viewers. Over the years, the partnership with HBO has only become deeper. Over the past three years, we have had the exclusive rights to key HBO series in Flanders and now we are very pleased to take that partnership to the next level and become the “Home of HBO”. Our viewers can be confident that they will have exclusive access to first run HBO series and as soon as possible after release in the US, on Telenet. In addition, we are expanding our offering with boxsets that our viewers can enjoy. We want to give them all the choices and let everyone decide where, how and when they view the series of their choice.”
With the additional branding of ‘Home of HBO’, Telenet is adopting a proven model for success which exists in numerous countries around the world,” said Jennifer Bowen, SVP International Distribution, HBO. “Telenet is a wonderful innovative partner and we look forward to continuing our relationship for years to come.”
Rio customers can view all HBO programs after the broadcast on demand for free. All HBO series are also available on PC and tablet via the Yelo app and website.
Separately, Telenet plans to start producing its own TV content. The first production will be the TV series Chaussée d’Amour, a 10-episode Flemish drama series by the producer deMensen. All the episodes will be released at the same time in 2016 to customers on Telenet’s video-on-demand subscriptions Rex and Rio.
