Promoting new shows and offering free streams is nothing new for major cable and broadcast networks these days. But, it is fairly uncommon for a premium channel like HBO to offer them for free on another platform that is not owned by them, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Starting on Wednesday, HBO, which is responsible for hit series like "The Sopranos," "The Wire," "Entourage," "Game of Thrones" and "Girls," will be offering up the pilot episodes of a couple of their new shows on Facebook to stream for free.

The first one is the new Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson dramedy "Ballers," which has been hailed as the new "Entourage."

This show will premier on Wednesday on Johnson's own Facebook page, which currently has over 49 million followers on it thanks to his legions of fans from the WWE and blockbuster movies.

See that trailer below.

The other series, "The Brink," is a new comedy that stars Jack Black ("School of Rock") and Tim Robbins ("The Shawshank Redemption"). The pair play off each other very well as they travel to different parts of the world facing international crises. In an unusual turn, these crises are adapted into a comedic series.

This show will debut on its own Facebook wall on the same day as "Ballers."

See that trailer below.

The concept of premiering and offering free views to promote shows is one that has been increasingly more common lately. The entire season of NBC's new Charles Manson drama "Aquarius" was actually made available online, which is a first for any major network since it debuted the streaming option the night of its premiere.

HBO also offers parts of episodes from shows like "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" and "Real Time with Bill Maher" on YouTube. 

This decision by HBO allows the network and its shows to reach a wider audience in an effort to gain more subscribers. It is most known for being a commercial-free network that historically cable and satellite TV subscribers had to pay extra to receive.