HBO South Asia
HBO formerly provided a separate feed with commercial breaks for audiences in South Asia, namely India, Bangladesh and the Maldives. All movie promos in this beam were according to IST. A time-shifted feed for Pakistan was launched in the mid-2000s in partnership with ARY Digital Network.[41] The schedule was the same as the Indian feed, with the difference being the commercial breaks and timings in PST.
Before the launch of HBO South Asia, HBO tried replicating the premium model in India. However, HBO then decided it was not commercially viable, so the South Asia channel was launched in India and also in Bangladesh, Pakistan and Maldives.[42]
HBO Asia and Eros International launched HBO Defined and HBO Hits across India on 21 February 2013 on Dish TV and Airtel Digital TV. These channels were commercial-free. The content of both channels included movies as well as most of HBO Original Programming. When the channels launched, the main HBO channel stopped airing original series.[43]
In 2015, HBO decided to exit the Indian market and license the channel to Turner International India.[44] The channel was revamped in February 2016 after a survey conducted by the channel team to better suit the masses.[45][46] HBO Defined and HBO Hits would be handled by Star India; however, HBO Defined and HBO Hits SD were shut down on 31 December 2015, while HBO Hits HD was replaced by HBO HD on 4 September 2016.[47] It only airs Hollywood movies, as Star India has the rights to HBO Original Programming, which is available on Star World and Disney+ Hotstar.[48]
WarnerMedia International announced on 15 October 2020 that HBO South Asia and WB Channel would close down on 15 December 2020. The HBO channel would no longer be available in India and Pakistan, while WB Channel ceased to exist in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and the Maldives.[49]
HBO India had closed down at midnight with the last movie on the SD channel being Mad Max: Fury Road (completed 1 hour before the shutdown) and the last movie on the HD channel being Memoirs of a Geisha. HBO Pakistan was also closed down at midnight.[50]
