HBO looking into launching UK service

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HBO, the US pay-TV group behind popular shows such as The Sopranos and Sex and the City, is eager to launch a UK channel as it attempts to broaden the audience for its programming. Chris Albrecht, HBO's chief executive, said the company was seeking a UK partner but had not yet found a business model that would make such a separate channel viable. A UK channel "is something I would love to see, and I'd entertain anybody who has any ideas about how to put that together," he said. "But it's a hard road for us." Although the company, owned by AOL Time Warner, sells its shows to broadcasters around the world, launching a dedicated UK channel would give it the option of developing local programming. HBO has sold its most successful original series - The Sopranos, Sex and the City and Six Feet Under - to Channel 4 and its sister channel, E4. It has also begun to import UK programming to the US - a US version of Da Ali G Show is currently airing on HBO. In the absence of launching channels in the UK and the rest of western Europe, Mr Albrecht said the company was considering distributing its shows through internet service providers. "This actually may be more viable in Europe right now," he said.