HBO to Relax Its Agreements With Movie Studios to Allow iCloud Streaming

HBO is reportedly working with Twentieth Century Fox and Universal Pictures on relaxing the terms of its licensing agreement to allow iCloud users to stream movies they've purchased from iTunes, according to the WSJ.

HBO has exclusive rights to stream Fox and Universal movies during specific "windows" after each film is released. The first window usually begins about half a year after a movie is released on DVD and lasts for about a year.

HBO isn't planning to give up its exclusive windows, for which it pays hundreds of millions of dollars a year, and which allow it to beam movies to its online service HBO Go as well as to its traditional TV channels. But HBO is relaxing terms to let users of iCloud and other services send movies they already own to other devices during those windows, an HBO spokesman said.


HBO already agreed to loosen its agreement with Warner Bros which works with iCloud now and is in talks with Fox and Universal. A resolution is expected for Fox within weeks. Likewise, Universal expects an resolution soon.

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