In just over a week from now, HBO Max will be rebranded and merged with Discovery+. With this change, Warner Bros. Discovery officially announced HBO Max will now be called just Max. I was at the press event and wanted to break down everything you need to know about this change as we get ready for May 23rd, when HBO Max gets larger and becomes Max.
Here is everything you need to know about Warner Bros. Discovery’s new Max streaming service:
Why call it Max?
Starting later this month, HBO MAX will be rebranded to be called MAX. This new Max service will be the new flagship service for Warner Bros. Discovery.
Warner Bros. Discovery says the Name MAX was picked as it’s the place that will have everything. It is described as the one service that will have something for everyone.
Part of this name change is to protect HBO as a brand, according to Warner Bros. Discovery. HBO Max included a lot of none HBO content and Warner Bros. Discovery doesn’t want to water down the HBO brand.
What will be on MAX?
MAX will also have the largest library of shows, according to Warner Bros. Discovery, as the vast catalog of Warner Bros. and Discovery content will be coming to Max. The service will also have more award-winning movies than any other service.
To help keep fresh content on Max Warner Bros. Discovery promises 40+ new titles every month. Along with the already large Discovery+ and HBO Max catalog of programs.
The tagline for MAX will be “The One to Watch.”
When will the newly merged service launch?
The service will launch on May 23rd, 2023. On that date, the HBO Max will auto-update on most devices. On a few devices, HBO Max subscribers will be forced to download a new app. (If you use an iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV you will need to download a new app. You can pre-order the new Max app on the iOS store HERE. So on launch day you are ready to go.)
The global rollout will happen slowly through 2024, including Europe in 2024.
What will the price be?
- Max Ad-lite plan with ads will cost $9.99 a month or $99.99 a year. Two streams at once, HD streaming, no offline downloads, 5.1 surround.
- Max Ad Free You will also be able to get a $15.99-a-month plan or $149.99 a year. Two streams at once HD, 30 offline downloads, and 5.1 surround sound.
- Max Ultimate Ad Free for $19.99 or $199.99 a year with four concurrent streams, 4K Ultra HD resolution, 100 offline downloads, and Dolby Atmos sound quality.
All current HBO Max subscribers will have their accounts converted to MAX accounts.
Warner Bros. Discovery says this will be one of the lightest ad loads in streaming.
What will be new?
The new MAX service will have a refreshed app with user profiles, personalized recommendations, and a new navigation menu.
There will also be a kid’s profile to have only kid-safe content and parental controls.
Warner Bros. Discovery also says this new Max app will be 20 to 30% faster compared to the older app depending on your device.
So what will this mean for Discovery+ as a stand-alone service?
Warner Bros. Discovery has confirmed that Discovery+ will be unchanged, and subscribers who like Discoery+ can keep it. Some content though first made for Discovery+, will now be MAX originals.
So if you don’t want to pay more for Max you don’t have to.
Are you excited that Discovery+ will remain its own service? What do you think of the new Max streaming service? Leave us a comment and let us know.