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If you’re planning to stream Game of Thrones on Sunday night, one big question might be heavy on your mind: should you use HBO GO or HBO NOW? There are other options for streaming, but many viewers stick between these two choices. Read on to learn more about the difference between the two for streaming the episode.
What Is HBO GO?
HBO GO is one of HBO’s two streaming services. HBO Go might be your first choice if you have a cable or satellite subscription that already includes HBO in the package. But unfortunately, HBO Go isn’t available with all cable companies. Some are still negotiating terms with HBO for using HBO Go. So you should check before tonight to make sure that your cable company lets you access and use HBO Go to watch Game of Thrones.
If your cable company works with HBO GO, then you’ll have free access to the HBO GO streaming service as long as you have HBO with your cable or satellite package.
What Is HBO NOW?
HBO Now is HBO’s standalone streaming service and provides all of HBO’s programming via the internet. You don’t need a cable or satellite subscription for this one because it’s standalone. But if you’re already paying for HBO elsewhere, you won’t get this one for free. The service costs $14.99 per month — but it offers a one-month free trial if you want to give it a try for the premiere. You must cancel before the end of the trial to avoid charges.
To get HBO NOW, download the HBO Now App on your phone or tablet. It’s available in the App Store, Google Play store and Amazon Appstore and other places.
Once your account is established, you can watch HBO Now through the app on your portable device, through the app on this extensive list of streaming devices, or on your computer over the web at HBONow.com. Sign in with the email and password you used to establish your account and start watching. You can watch live or on demand later.
HBO NOW vs. HBO GO
The services are fairly similar. According to HBO, they both offer all of HBO’s shows (including Game of Thrones) and they both stream on phones, TV, tablets, and laptops. You can stream live episodes with both too. But only HBO GO is free if you already have an HBO package with a cable or satellite provider, and only HBO NOW will work without a TV package.
There’s a bonus if you watch on HBO NOW or GO. Your episode live stream might start about three minutes before everyone else. In other words, the episode might begin at 8:57 p.m. Eastern rather than 9 p.m. Eastern, leaving you just a couple minutes ahead of people watching with more traditional methods.
During previous seasons, viewers could also skip ahead even during live streams and finish the episode before other people or jump past the “previously on” section. It’s not known if the two services will work that way this year too.
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