Cable TV services on the internet have always suffered from performance issues. When it comes to the big game, the season premiere or an episode going viral, the half-baked service seems to crack under the pressure.

HBO Now -- the standalone internet TV service what launched five days ago -- will be up for its first test tonight when "Game of Thrones Episode 1: The Wars To Come" hits the web at the same time as its premiered on cable TV and other services like Dish Network's Sling TV.

Like Us on Facebook

It's a huge test, even if HBO Now is only available in the U.S. due to the massive fanbase preparing for a night watching Game of Thrones. This is as big as the Super Bowl or Wrestlemania for millions of TV fans.

Home Box Office's previous internet service HBO Go cracked under the pressure time and time again. Almost every week brought a new set of issues for the service, although for the most part HBO didn't allocate enough resources to keep the broadcast live on HBO Go.

CEO Richard Plepler has assured audiences the same won't happen on HBO Now when the servers start heating up and millions dash onto the service to watch the episode, which premieres tonight at 9:00 p.m. (ET).

It has partnered with Major League Basketball Advanced Media (MLBAM) to create the service. The team has already worked on WatchESPN and the WWE Network, two serviceable if a little underwhelming internet TV platforms.

Even if the design of the service for Apple TV, iOS, Mac and Windows is all fine and dandy, it's still up to HBO to make sure it has enough bandwidth to cope with the massive influx of viewers on stream.

It has some sort of partnership with Cablevision, meaning they are unlikely to offer poor service at peak hours. HBO also has good relations with Comcast and Time Warner Cable but has apparently tried to make sure it has direct access at peak hours.

This is something that's annoyed net neutrality activists that have campaigned throughout 2013 and 2014 to make sure these types of backdoor agreements can't be forged.

HBO seems all set for tonight and it will be a real awaking as to whether companies like HBO can compete on the internet stage against providers like YouTube and Netflix that have spent billions on data centers, server rooms and software optimization for streaming over the past few years.

TagsGame of Thrones, HBO Now, HBO, Internet TV, online video