HBO Max recently rebranded as Max, bundled along with Discovery+ in a move to restructure operations and expand its viewer base. Although some hiccups accompanied the launch, subscriber numbers are already looking quite promising.
So far, parent company Warner Bros. Discovery reports about 70 percent of existing subscribers switched to the new Max platform. This figure “exceeds expectations,” says JB Perrette, Global Streaming President of Warner Bros. Discovery. The 30 percent who have yet to register will see an alert to sign up when opening the app but will still be able to access content with a current membership.
Warner Bros. Discovery also noted that Discovery+ saw a decrease in members but had expected this to happen. Around 20 percent of Max subscribers are watching Discovery+ content, which makes having both streaming services a bit redundant for some households.
Looking at subscriptions from last year, Discovery+ and Max total 96.1 million members combined, with the majority of that number coming from Max. This is one of the main reasons behind WarnerMedia and Discovery’s merger in 2022. Last month, Warner Bros. Discovery also started bundling Disney+ and Paramount+ in with its catalog of streaming services.
As CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, David Zaslav said at a recent MoffettNathanson event regarding marketing strategy:
“It would be great for consumers. It would probably reduce churn. We would [all] be marketing one product. And it would provide a meaningful consumer experience. If we don’t do this ourselves, I think it will be done to us.”
Amazon Prime Video, Roku, Apple, and others have already started offering bundling packages offering a mix of streaming services. Warner Bros. Discovery hopes to stop subscribers from jumping to other streaming services by encompassing several under its umbrella.
David Zaslav is optimistic about the future of Warner Bros. Discovery’s streaming landscape, saying “The key here is our streaming business is no longer a bleeder.” Streaming has not been very profitable in recent years, and now Warner Bros. Discovery is anticipating finally seeing a profit in 2024.
Max offers a number of plan tiers ranging from $9.99 to $19.99 and alone offers over 35,000 hours of films and series, including original content.