HBO Max, Discovery+ to Relaunch as Single Streaming Service in Summer 2023
HBO Max and Discovery+ are going to be merged and relaunched as a single video streaming service, Warner Bros. Discovery announced this week.
The as-yet-unnamed platform is set to launch in the US next summer, according to Variety(Opens in a new window), followed by Latin America in the fall of 2023, Europe in early 2024, Asia Pacific in mid-2024, and additional markets by the end of the year.
Last year's merger between WarnerMedia and Discovery—now known as Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD)—left Discovery+ and HBO Max's combined 92 million subscribers wondering what's next; rumor had it the two platforms would come together to take on major competitors like Disney+, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video.
CEO David Zaslav confirmed the news in a company earnings call on Thursday, tipping plans(Opens in a new window) for a possible free, ad-supported version of the consolidated platform. HBO Max and Discovery+ customers currently pay $14.99/month and $6.99/month for ad-free streaming or $9.99/month and $4.99/month for ad-supported viewing, respectively.
"At the end of the day, putting all the content together was the only way we saw to make this a viable business," JB Perrette, CEO and president of global streaming and games for Warner Bros. Discovery, said on the second-quarter earnings call.
Zaslav, whose post-pandemic approach to filmmaking appears to focus on theatrical releases over streaming originals, this week shelved DC Comics movie Batgirl and Scoob! sequel Holiday Haunt—both produced exclusively for HBO Max.
Neither WarnerMedia nor Discovery immediately responded to PCMag's request for comment.
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