What is "hbo"

HBO (Home Box Office) is an American television network with branches including:

• HBO (international)
• HBO Asia
• HBO India
• HBO Brazil
• HBO Canada
• HBO Central Europe
• HBO Latin America Group
• HBO Netherlands

HBO may also refer to:

• Ancient Hebrew language
• Halo.Bungie.Org, a Halo fansite
• HBO & Company, taken over by McKesson Corporation in 1999
• Hartung–Boothroyd Observatory, in Mount Pleasant, New York
• Hoger beroepsonderwijs, higher applied education institutes in Flanders and the Netherlands
• Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
• Hyperbaric oxygen
• Metaboric acid

Home Box Office (simply known as HBO) is an American premium cable and satellite television network that is owned by Time Warner through its respective flagship company Home Box Office, Inc. Programming featured on the network consists primarily of theatrically released motion pictures and original television series, along with made-for-cable movies and documentaries, boxing matches, and occasional stand-up comedy and concert specials.

HBO is the oldest and longest continuously operating pay television service (basic or premium) in the United States, having been in operation since November 8, 1972. In 2014, HBO had an adjusted operating income of US$1.79 billion, compared to the US$1.68 billion it accrued in 2013.

HBO Asia (formerly known as MovieVision, officially launched on 1 May 1992 and officially dissolved on 31 May 1995) is owned by HBO (a Time Warner company). The Singapore-based broadcast network offers a bouquet of channels and services including 24-hour commercial-free subscription movie channels in standard-definition and high-definition – HBO, HBO SIGNATURE, HBO FAMILY, HBO HITS, CINEMAX and RED – as well as HBO GO and HBO ON DEMAND. HBO Asia is also the exclusive distributor of BabyFirst in Asia.

HBO (Home Box Office), which was originally established as a premium cable television channel in the United States, has expanded worldwide. Since 1991, HBO has overseen a number of partnerships that operate HBO-branded television networks around the world. As HBO was launched in new markets, the brand has been used in several countries.

While in some countries, it operates using a subscription-based model akin to that of the U.S. service, in others it is offered as a basic cable channel. Although HBO has the right to distribute its original programs for broadcast in other countries, the terms of its licensing agreements with film studios only retains it the right to broadcast them within the United States and the territories of Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, therefore film rights for the international channels must be licensed separately.

This article focuses on other HBO channels outside of the United States, including channels that do not carry the HBO branding to which the channel has major program distribution agreements. Eventually, there will be brief histories on each of the international channels, describing any regionally available programming and each service's development.