In a move that I can only visualize as a businessman falling down a flight of stairs and knocking his teeth out of his mouth on the way down, the streaming service HBO Max will rebrand as just “Max.” Discovery+ will continue to exist as a separate streaming service, but much of its content will come to Max when the revised streaming service launches first in the United States on May 23, and there are three pricing options, via its website:
- With Ads – $9.99/month or $99.99/year (16% savings)
Stream in Full HD on 2 devices at once - Ad-Free – $15.99/month or $149.99/year (over 20% savings)
Stream in Full HD on 2 devices at once, up to 30 offline downloads - Ultimate Ad-Free – $19.99/month or $199.99/year (over 16% savings)
Stream in 4K UHD on 4 devices at once, up to 100 offline downloads
On one hand, okay, it does actually make sense for a streaming service to want to be its own distinct brand and not be tied to any one thing. CBS All Access rebranding as Paramount+ is a decent example of that. On the other hand, the HBO brand is known for award-winning quality, and Max saying, “No, we don’t want to be associated with just that!” is kind of hilarious, especially when the Discovery+ content will be adding a lot of not award-winning content to the service. However, JB Perrette, president and CEO of global streaming and games for Warner Bros. Discovery, attempted to offer a more nuanced take on the topic, per Variety.
He said, “We all love HBO, and it’s a brand that has been built over five decades” showcasing “edgy, groundbreaking entertainment for adults. But it’s not exactly where parents would most eagerly drop off their kids. And yet Warner Bros. Discovery has some of the best-known kids’ characters, animation and brands in the industry. Not surprisingly, the category has not met (its) true potential on HBO Max.”
Regardless, Max intends to add more than 40 new titles and TV show seasons monthly, and Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav boldly proclaimed, “Max is the one to watch.” Just don’t try to watch Batgirl on there. That was too valuable for anyone to be allowed to watch.
