Google And HBO are partnering up this holiday season to offer a terrific deal on the latest Chromecast streaming media player and a subscription to HBO now. Through Christmas Eve, all buyers of the Google Chromecast 2 will receive three months of HBO Now, a $45 additional value.

Streaming Media Players

The portable streaming media player has become one of the hottest holiday gift items in the past few years. The reasonably priced devices allow owners to stream various contents directly to their TV sets through an HDMI connection. Some of the players plug directly into the viewer's set via the HDMI port while others call for a separate HDMI cable.

The most popular budget streaming media players are the Google Chromecast, Roku Stick, Roku Express and Amazon Fire Stick. All can be controlled via the user's smartphone, but the Rokus both come with a dedicated remote while the Amazon Fire Stick remote is optional and available for an additional $10. Roku's Express is the newest addition to the field, and essentially functions as a tiny set top box connected via the aforementioned HDMI cable.

Google HBO Holiday Deal

With the competition so fierce this season, all of the top streaming media players have already been discounted for the holidays, with various Black Friday sales having knocked up to $15 off the usual price of the items. Google has just upped the ante however, for its Chromecast 2 player, by offering a generous 3-month subscription to HBO Now with purchase through Dec. 24.

HBO Now is HBO's standalone subscription service for viewers who do not have a separate HBO subscription through a cable TV provider. A subscription to HBO Now would be redundant for such customers, who are already entitled to access HBO content via the network's portable streaming service, HBO Go. Subscribers to both services can access all of HBO current programming as well as additional movies and episodes from past exclusive shows like The Sopranos and Sex And The City.

If you're not already an HBO subscriber, the offer of three full months of HBO Now with purchase of a Google Chromecast is quite generous, given that the usual fee is $14.99 per month. The Google Chromecast can be purchased at any retail outlet, and while many are sure to continue discounting the item for the holidays, right now until Monday, Nov. 28, Google itself is offering the device for $10 off when purchased at its website, meaning buyers will receive the Google Chromecast 2 plus three months of HBO Now for just $25.