Apple has forged a deal with Time Warner's HBO cable network to make the channel's content available for download through iTunes. The new offering is a big step forward for the slowly-growing video portion of Apple's iTunes Store, albeit one that has cost the company to finally break from its infamously hard-line approach to pricing.
Under the deal, Apple has agreed to up its usual pricing of $1.99 per episode to $2.99 for HBO's flagship shows such as Rome and The Sopranos - though a bunch of other shows will still be priced at the standard $1.99 per episode rate. This is a significant change for Apple seeing as NBC pulled its programming from iTunes last year after the Cupertino-based company refused to charge more than $1.99 for some of network's most popular shows. Inevitably, HBO's move will prompt other content owners to demand flexible prices as well.