That was fast! Roku & Tubi are picking up the recently let-go HBO series. Before we delve into some particulars though, let’s get the following off our chest, shall we? Despite the business model WBD chooses to employ, outsourcing this stuff it’s like – Hell, No! Isn’t the point of an entertainment streaming service to have all its content under one roof? None of us what to hunt and click on multiple sites to find what we want to watch, even if some of it is a free, FAST site. HBO content should be on HBO’s home site. Period.
For example, this writer never saw THE NEVERS and I might want to one day; it could happen. Oh, it’s an HBO Original, but not on HBO? Forget it. Oh, the dust has settled and I want to try to get through WESTWORLD again to try to understand it better. Oh, it’s an HBO Original, but not on HBO? Forget it. Yeah, another dumb move to hurt the brand. Now, having said that, how about those promised particulars?
Deals have been struck with Roku and Tubi to launch branded channels this year, bringing more than 2,000 hours of programs in total to each service. Some of the big titles making the transition are WESTWORLD, RAISED BY WOLVES, THE NEVERS, THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE, and even shows from the Discovery side of the company. We gave Tubi a look and we include here a snippet of its press release regarding:
Tubi announced it has signed a content deal with Warner Bros. Discovery that will add 14 WB branded FAST channels and over 225 AVOD titles totaling over 2,000 hours to the platform. Tubi will launch three brand new curated FAST channels – WB TV Keeping It Real, WB TV Watchlist and WB TV All Together – each featuring award-winning Warner Bros. Discovery content including all seasons “Westworld,” “Raised by Wolves,” “Legendary,” “FBoy Island,” “The Nevers,” “Finding Magic Mike,” “Head of the Class,” and “The Time Traveler’s Wife.” Also debuting on the platform are 11 FAST channels focused around fan-favorite genres including Lifestyles, Homes, Classic Movies, Education, Mysteries, and Weddings, among several others.
Roku’s press release pretty much says the same thing. Note, however not all of the purged shows are in the packaged deals. MINX and THE GORDITA CHRONICLES and all those animated shows are still homeless it seems. So, if you’re game to play Follow Your Show and some HBO titles of yours disappear before you get a chance to watch them, they just might show up on Tubi & Roku in the future. It is what it is.
