David Farnor | On 11, Jun 2013

Holy mother of dragons, Game of Thrones Series 3 is going on-demand next month.

Yes, Game of Thrones Series 3 will be available to buy online in the UK on Monday 15th July.

The lucky provider to bag the show? Tesco’s blinkbox.

blinkbox will be the first digital retailer to offer the latest season outside of the US thanks to a new deal between Tesco and HBO – a huge step for the show, which has been one of the most pirated TV programmes around thanks to Sky Atlantic’s exclusive UK broadcast rights and a bonkers decision by someone at HBO to not release the DVDs until a year after each series screened.

It’s a huge step for blinkbox, too, who snapped up the first two series last August to offer Season Two before its DVD release. Now, they’ve done it again, saying “Dracarys” to Sky’s on-demand service by offering Season Three just weeks after it ended.

“Social media buzz is expected to drive digital views,” blinkbox announced in a press release today. No kidding.

The internet went slightly mad last week after certain things happened in a certain episode, especially when the Metro spoiled the plot details. Now, though, spoiler-phobic fans without Sky subscriptions can go straight to blinkbox – a perfect demonstration of how digital distribution can help to reduce piracy.

blinkbox CEO Michael Comish commented: “Game of Thrones is the TV show of the moment and we expect demand for the third series to be high. Whether you have heard about the series recently thanks to the buzz around season 3 or have enjoyed the first two episodes but don’t have a Sky subscription, blinkbox is the place to enjoy this gripping series.”

Colin Smith, Director, International Digital Distribution for HBO said: “We are thrilled to offer Game of Thrones season 3 via blinkbox for those in the UK who haven’t had the opportunity to see it.”

Ivan Radford, Editor of VODzilla.co, said: “HODOR.” And preceded to jump around the room in excitement.

Andrew Jones, Writer at VODzilla.co, added: “Stop Hodoring.”

Our reaction to the news:

 

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