Number of HBO subscribers in the U.S. 2009-2020

As of December 2020, HBO had an estimated 41 million domestic subscribers, including subscribers to HBO NOW. HBO's over-the-top video on demand service HBO Now, launched in April 2015, had five million subscribers in February 2018. The premium cable and satellite service had 142 million subscribers worldwide by the end of 2017. As a result of growing subscriber numbers, the company's subscription revenue has naturally increased. In 2017, this revenue reached 5.5 billion U.S. dollars for the first time, an increase of almost 1.5 billion U.S. dollars from 2012. However, the making of blockbusters such as Game of Thrones and Westworld comes at a cost. In 2017, HBO's total programming costs reached 2.26 billion U.S. dollars.