Max is creeping up on its second week as a newly rebranded streaming service. The update is automatic on newer devices, though households with older contraptions can easily update from the now-dead HBO Max. A prompt will appear on such devices with instructions for how to register with Max.
As for how Max is doing since launching in May, the numbers are showing it is off to a good start with 70 percent of its previous member base switching over already.
One interesting tidbit to note from viewer data is that around 20 percent of Max members are using the streaming service to watch Discovery+ content.
Warner Bros. Discovery is the parent company of both streaming services and had been expecting Discovery+ to lose some of its subscribers to Max after its launch. Disney, also under this corporate umbrella, saw a decline in subscribers as well.
Max offers some of the same streaming content as Discovery+ and Disney+, so it’s only fair to assume some households would prefer to cancel other memberships instead of paying for all three. Max’s video library hosts 35,000 hours of programming, hundreds of which are directly from Discovery+ and Disney+. Max is far from a one-stop app for all three streaming platforms, so many will want to keep Discovery+ and Disney+ for full access to all their favorite series and films.
As Warner Bros Discovery continues to expand its streaming business while cutting operational costs, the company is looking more and more into bundle packages. Instead of paying for three separate subscriptions, households can sign up for a bundle deal and get a discounted price for all of them.
Other streaming services are also looking to join bundle deals with major entertainment companies to entice customers to join their numbers, or at least not leave. Max is showing profits for the first time since the idea to rebrand and relaunch became public. If these numbers are any indicator of what’s the come, Warner Bros. Discovery’s new strategy of bundling streaming platforms is off to a great start.