HBO Putting New GIRLS Episodes On YouTube, But Aussies Get It Faster


HBO, the network that brought you piracy-magnets like Game Of Thrones and Boardwalk Empire, will stick the first two episodes of GIRLS season three on YouTube tomorrow. Curiously, Australia will get it before YouTube does! Here’s how.

From 5am (AEDT) tomorrow (14 Jan), YouTubers will get access to the first two episodes of GIRLS season three on HBO’s YouTube channel as part of what the network calls a “digital first” strategy.

The lead up to the premiere has been peppered with HBO joining different social media networks like Snapchat and Vine to draw the show’s young, predominately online fan base in.

Even Game Of Thrones is being teased to death on Vine.

Whether Aussies will be able to get access to the YouTube eps remains to be seen. HBO is a US-only network, and while it’s giving these episodes away for free, ‘free’ might be dependent on where you’re living. There are plenty of ways to get around YouTube geoblocking which we’ve discussed before, however.

But all this YouTube glitz might not matter to ordinary Aussies wanting to watch the plight of their favourite New York-dwelling 20-somethings, as we’ll get it before YouTube will.

For those who don’t want to take to the ‘net to watch GIRLS, Foxtel channel Showcase will air the two new episodes back to back from 7:35pm AEDT tonight. For those doing the maths, that’s 2.5 hours after it airs in the US. Bravo, Showcase! That means they’ll be on Foxtel’s Play catch-up service shortly after that. HBO in the US will air the eps on YouTube 12 hours after the US premiere, which means that YouTube will be 10 hours behind Australia.

If still you want to get onto the YouTube to watch GIRLS, head over here for the HBO YouTube channel.