
This article was written in collaboration with HBO. All views expressed in this article are the independent opinion of DollarsAndSense.sg
Movies and dramas as entertainment and an artform have come a long way, thanks to wave after wave of technological innovations.
In the span of a few decades, we went from having to watch opera performances ‘live’ to being able to enjoy movies in cinemas and on our television at home. Thanks to video streaming services, we now also have access to a huge catalogue of movies and dramas on our smartphones, tablets and laptops 24/7.
Here are 5 important factors Singaporeans should consider before signing up for an online video subscription service.
#1 Quality Of Content Library
The most important thing when choosing a video subscription service is the quality and size of the content library. Time is a precious commodity, and whenever we find the time to watch a show, we want to make that time count.
When it comes to content libraries, not many can come close to the pedigree of movies and video series offered by HBO GO, a premium video-on-demand service available in Singapore and around the world.
You’ve probably heard the phrase whispered by your friends and on social media: “Winter is coming.” Game of Thrones is a series exclusively available on HBO GO that has literally shaped our modern culture and consciousness – and if you have not watched it yet, or want to revisit King’s Landing, you can binge watch all 8 seasons (lasting 63.5 hours) of Game of Thrones on HBO GO.
Other top-rated, award-winning shows available on HBO GO include:
Series | Seasons | Episodes |
The Wire | 5 | 60 |
Deadwood | 3 | 36 |
The Sopranos | 6 | 86 |
West World | 2 | 22 |
Band of Brothers and The Pacific | 2 | 20 |
Silicon Valley | 6 | 52 |
Veep | 7 | 66 |
Chernobyl | 1 | 5 |
Barry | 2 | 16 |
The World Between Us | 1 | 10 |
Sex and the City | 6 | 94 |
Besides carrying an impressive back catalogue, you’ll also want a video streaming service that has the latest blockbusters, documentaries and series. In this aspect, HBO GO does not disappoint.
Thanks to their own HBO Originals and tie-ups with leading studios, HBO GO subscribers will enjoy highly-acclaimed content like Aquaman, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, Crazy Rich Asians, Bohemian Rhapsody, The Lego Movie 2, Wonder Park, Second Act and the Fast and Furious movies.
For those who prefer something a little more cerebral, HBO GO also features hard-hitting documentaries and current affairs programmes like Bad Blood (about the convicted founder of Theranos, Elizabeth Holmes).
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#2 Platforms Available
Most of us own multiple devices and we want to be able to enjoy content, on our own terms, in our own way – whether that’s on our smart TV on the weekends with our loved ones, in front of our computer with snacks after a long day of work, or on our phones during our daily commute on public transport.
Before subscribing to any video subscription service, it is important to check that it supports the platforms you have and want to watch content on.
For instance, HBO GO supports playback on:
– Smartphones (iOS and Android)
– Popular Web Browsers (Chrome, Safari, Firefox)
– Tablets (iPads and Android tablets)
– Casting Platforms (Apple AirPlay and Google Chromecast)
With your single HBO GO subscription, you can watch unlimited content on 5 different devices and 2 streams concurrently, allowing you to truly enjoy your favourite shows on your terms.
#3 Cost Of Subscription
We all have different thresholds for what we would consider as an appropriate spending on entertainment. But with monthly subscriptions that cost less than how much we would end up spending on a pair of movie tickets, it is hard to argue with the value proposition that movie on-demand services provide.
A monthly subscription to HBO GO costs $13.98 for a single user. For that price, you get an entire month of ad-free enjoyment of HBO GO’s entire content library. The best part? You can get your subscription directly in minutes, which means that you’re not tied to a particular cable provider and you can cancel anytime if you want.
Not having a contract makes it particularly handy for binge-watchers, who can choose to subscribe when the entire series they want to watch debuts, just for the duration they need to finish watching.
For families with children, you can subscribe to HBO GO during the school holidays, or during festive seasons when you are hosting guests and want to make sure there’s never a dull moment at your home.
Because of our ability to cancel any time, video on-demand services like HBO GO are actually incentivised to continually improve their content catalogue so we will have a reason to remain subscribed, so we can expect their already impressive library to continue to grow.
Read Also: Singapore Movie Ticket Price Guide 2019
#4 Family-Friendly Features
Households with young ones would naturally be interested in the catalogue of kid-friendly content and the ability to control what their kids watch. In these two areas, HBO GO delivers as well.
There is a dedicated section on HBO GO just for kids, with beloved titles like The Sesame Street, We Bare Bears, Powerpuff Girls, Peppa Pig, Ben 10, Dexter’s Laboratory, and My Little Pony.
To protect the young from violence, vulgarities and adult themes, you can set the parental controls to only show movies that are of a certain age-appropriate rating, such as G, PG, PG13, NC16, M18 and R21. This means that adults can still enjoy movies and shows as intended by the filmmakers, while children don’t accidentally see something they shouldn’t.
Households with older folks, would be happy to know that HBO GO supports subtitles for most of its catalogue in various languages. For some selected programmes, multi-language audio is also available. Whatever you choose to screen for your next family hangout, you can be sure that the entire family would be able to have a great time together.
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#5 Availability Of A Free Trial
Those who have not tried an online video on-demand service might understandably be hesitant to subscribe. That’s why it makes sense to take advantage of free trials, if available.
If the features and content offerings of HBO GO has intrigued you, you might be pleased to learn that HBO GO offers a free trial, which gives you instant access to their entire library of award-winning content and to all the family-sharing and offline viewing features discussed in this article.
To get started on watching in the next few minutes, download the HBO GO app for your iOS or Android device and create an account with your e-mail address.
Subscribing is as easy as buying something from the app store, and you don’t even have to give HBO your credit card details. While you’ll automatically be charged every month after the 7-day free trial ends, you can still opt to cancel at any time.
Go try HBO GO and let us know what you think!
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