HBO for iTunes?

There are lots of rumors about a possible earlier release of the 3G iPhone as shortages build and we approach the June 2008 date when a 3G-capable iPhone will be released. Something else that actually is more important might also be happening at a faster pace, though.

Since most video viewing is substituted for some other mode (you might watch a movie at a theater, or on a DVD, or as video on demand, or on a premium channel or on broadcast TV), changes in the "release windows" that dictate when each delivery mode can get the content also have the effect of shifting revenue shares within the ecosystem.

According to a report published by Conde Naste Portfolio, Apple is on the verge of offering HBO original programs on iTunes. The programming, which would include hits like the Sopranos and Deadwood, offered at a premium to the standard $1.99 an episode fee.

If true, the deal will be a break in tradition as much for HBO as for Apple, and provide further evidence of a quickening pace of "release window" modifications that have more content going to some form of digital delivery.

As release windows change, so do the financial and contractual agreements that govern when content can be made available. That, more than anything else, will determine how successful downloads, streaming and video on demand can become.

Up to this point HBO has been a nearly-complete hold out in the digital and streaming venue. It now is testing streaming for its current subscribers, but has completely avoided any availability for non-subscribers.