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HBO Cancels Videology's <em>Game Of Thrones</em> Viewing Parties
By
Rebecca Fishbein
Published Apr 19, 2015
Modified Apr 19, 2015
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By
Rebecca Fishbein
Published Apr 19, 2015
Modified Apr 19, 2015
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If you were planning to watch Darth Sansa and Whisperfinger's creepy love grow in Videology's back room tonight, you're out of luck—HBO's banned the Williamsburg bar from doing live screenings of Game Of Thrones, all in the name of anti-piracy.
Videology, which also screens Mad Men on Sundays, has been showing Game of Thrones for a few years now without hearing a peep from the suits at Home Box Office. But according to a post on their Facebook, HBO's asked them to back off. "Sorry guys. No Game of Thrones showing tonight. Or ever. Not our choice. #WinterIsHere," Videology wrote in the post.
"It's true. They have asked us to no longer show it, which is completely within their right, but we still are disappointed," Videology co-founder Wendy Chamberlain told us in an email.
"The fans who came to Videology were die hards and real GoT enthusiasts. We're sad we won't be able to give them a place to geek out together for the next 9 weeks."
It's a bummer for sure, and also frustrating, considering all the other bars that have aired Game of Thrones (and Veep, and True Blood, and that horrible show with Lena Dunham) around town.
It's also hard to see how Videology's tiny back room could threaten one of the most powerful premium cable networks. According to the Village Voice, which first reported the aforementioned cease and desist, HBO's been cracking down on original programming piracy in an effort to hang onto their subscribers, so it's likely we'll be hearing more from the Bar Screening Gestapo in the future.
HBO declined to say how many C&Ds they were sending out, and noted in a statement that "this is nothing new, as we have taken such actions for well over a decade."
"As a pay subscription service, HBO should not be made available in public establishments. When it does happen, it is of particular concern when there is an attempt to profit off the programming," the statement said.
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