A few years ago it looked like Foxtel would stick to its guns like HBO and not offer an online-only service, but talk of fibre-to-the-premises forced Australia's pay TV giant to make the leap into the brave new world. Had it known we'd end up with the hotch-potch Multi-Technology Mix National Broadband Network then Foxtel might have dragged its feet, but now it's well-placed to face the future however the NBN plays out.

News that HBO is going down the same path should certainly concern Foxtel. Details of HBO's new online service are still scarce, but it will likely be considerably cheaper than Foxtel Play even when you allow for conversion rates and geo-dodging costs. HBO has dabbled in online-only streaming in a few countries, with the cost of HBO Nordic translating to just under AU$15 per month. Some Australians already sneak into the Nordic service and you can be sure more will eye off the US service when it launches next year.

Meanwhile Foxtel Play starts at $25 per month, but that leaps to $50 if you want premium HBO content like Game of Thrones. It will be interesting to see if Foxtel temporarily drops its pricing again for the next season of Game of Thrones, but even then HBO online will probably still work out cheaper. Foxtel Play will likely be the more attractive option if you're chasing more than HBO content.

You can be sure that HBO will try harder than Netflix to enforce geo-blocking – because it has a vested interest in keeping foreigners out in order to protect rights deals with the likes of Foxtel.

Of course where there's a will there's a way. Defeating geo-blocking is child's play, the tricky part is convincing US-only services to take your money. Unlike Netflix, HBO certainly won't look the other way if you use an Australian credit card, but some other tricks for sneaking into Netflix, HuluPlus, Amazon Prime and the US iTunes store will likely work with HBO.