On HBO’s Existing Apple TV App

Greg Sandoval, writing for The Verge back in June 2013:

Getting HBO Go on the Apple TV might have taken longer had HBO not begun to boost the number of engineers working at the company’s new development center in Seattle. Apple TV was the first app that HBO created completely in-house, said [HBO CTO Otto] Berkes, a former Microsoft executive who started at HBO two years ago. Prior to Apple TV, HBO teamed with third parties on its apps, but “this was 100 percent created by our software and design staff,” Berkes said. “It marks a turning point. I would say we’re two times faster than just a year ago, and that will increase over time.”

Earlier today: “HBO CTO Otto Berkes Resigns After Network Enlists MLB to Build OTT Platform”:

“Recently HBO’s management decided to partner with a third party to assist HBO in bringing our OTT service to market in 2015,” Berkes wrote. “This is a change in direction from what I planned with HBO and the approach will not utilize my overall capabilities. Therefore, I feel that this is the right time for me to move on from HBO so that I am able to fully pursue my passion building world-class technology teams, products and businesses.”

★ Tuesday, 9 December 2014