http://www.multichannel.com/news/finance/hbo-now-produce-losses-rest-year/392766
HBO Now to Produce Losses for Rest of Year
Time Warner Inc. expects HBO Now to eventually be very profitable, but the
streaming service will produce losses for the remainder of the year.
HBO Now was announced last year and launched earlier this year. Time Warner
expects it to grow into a business generating hundreds of millions in revenue
and attract the growing ranks of cord-cutters and cord-nevers.
"We're extremely pleased with how well it's been received," Time Warner
chairman and CEO Jeff Bewkes said on the company's earnings call Wednesday. He
didn't provide numbers on how many people have signed up, but noted it was the
top-grossing entertainment app on Apple’s iTunes Store in May and June.
Bewkes said that in addition to spending on technology and marketing to get HBO
Now up and running, the company plans to invest in original programming. It
plans to have Bill Simmons, who recently signed a multiplatform deal with HBO,
create content for the service. Other announcements are expected in the coming
months, Bewkes said.
