Max, welcome to the streaming wars
Carlo De Marchis
Advisor. 35+ years in sports & media tech. "A guy with a scarf" Public speaker. C-suite, strategy, product, innovation, OTT, digital, B2B/D2C marketing, AI/ML.
Summary
Long read
Warner Bros. Discovery has unveiled its new blended streaming service, Max, which combines HBO Max and Discovery+. The launch of Max comes as legacy media companies continue to pivot away from traditional pay-TV and build their own subscription streaming products.
Official media release: read here .
The announcement was made at a presentation in Burbank, California, where Warner Bros. Discovery executives revealed their strategy to better compete with streaming giants like Netflix and Disney. The new platform, which will debut in the US on May 23, will allow Warner Bros. Discovery to control its own destiny and have long-term business optionality.
I am still waiting for the VOD version of the presentation by Zaslav to be released on the ir.wbd.com website.
"Max is the one to watch because it's home to shows that have a supersized effect on people and culture," said Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav. "It's streaming's version of must-see TV."
The launch of Max is a significant development in the ongoing streaming wars. With over 96 million global streaming subscribers, Warner Bros. Discovery is well-positioned to compete in this space, and the company's long-term strategy, which includes expanding into international markets, suggests that it is well aware of the challenges it faces and is taking proactive steps to address them.
What is the strategy behind Max?
Warner Bros. Discovery's strategy behind Max is to combine the best of both HBO Max and Discovery+ to create a platform that uniquely combines breadth and superior quality with iconic franchises and strong product experience. The launch of Max is part of the company's broader content offering and consumer proposition, and it is expected to provide an unrivaled range of choice for viewers.
"Our incredible team has been hard at work taking the best of both legacy technology platforms to deliver a product that works much better," said JB Perrette, President & CEO, Global Streaming & Games, Warner Bros. Discovery. "We're confident that all these enhancements will deliver a stronger experience for our customers, which will drive more engagement, help enhance retention, and improve customer satisfaction, which in turn will help us continue to scale."
What content will be available on Max?
Max will be the destination for HBO Originals, Warner Bros. films, Max Originals, the DC universe, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, an expansive offering of kids content, and best-in-class programming across food, home, reality, lifestyle, and documentaries from leading brands like HGTV, Food Network, Discovery Channel, TLC, ID, and more. The platform will feature a regular freshness of content with an average of more than 40 new titles and seasons every month.
Newly announced titles include a Max Original Harry Potter series, a faithful adaptation of the beloved original book series by J.K. Rowling, who will serve as executive producer; a Max Original comedy series derived from The Big Bang Theory; an HBO Original Game of Thrones prequel A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight; a Max Original drama series based on The Conjuring films; Magnolia Network's Fixer Upper: The Hotel; Discovery Channel's Survive the Raft; Max Original Peter & the Wolf from Bono, Adult Swim's Rick and Morty: The Anime; Investigation Discovery's Lost Women of Highway 20; Cartoon Network's Tiny Toons Looniversity; and TLC's Love & Translation.
In addition, the personalized recommendation feature that is available for every user across the whole service has the ability to increase user engagement, enhance retention and improve customer satisfaction, leading to more subscribers for Warner Bros. Discovery.
What's the pricing offer?
Pricing is also a key factor in the success of any streaming service. Warner Bros. Discovery has priced its plans competitively, offering customers three options to choose from based on their household needs.
Max Ad-Lite: $9.99/month or $99.99/year
Max Ad Free: $15.99/month or $149.99/year
Max Ultimate Ad Free: $19.99/month or $199.99/year
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"The three pricing tiers are affordable, and the features that come with each tier are tailored to meet the unique needs of the subscribers. It is a pricing strategy that is likely to appeal to customers who are looking for value for their money," says Jane Williams, an industry analyst.
Why the name change?
Warner Bros. Discovery has decided to drop "HBO" from the name of its streaming service, HBO Max, to signal that the streamer’s breadth of programming is even broader, pulling in nonfiction favorites from the Discovery side of the house. JB Perrette, President, and CEO of Global Streaming and Games for Warner Bros. Discovery, explained the thinking behind the rebranding while saying HBO will be preserved as a brand within the Max fold.
Perrette said, “We all love HBO, and it’s a brand that has been built over five decades to stand for 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.”
Casey Bloys, Chief Content Officer of HBO and Max, elaborated on the decision to drop HBO from the HBO Max name, saying, "It's a premium brand. It is not designed to take on everything in the library or in the streaming service." He added that the name Max was short, tight, universal, approachable, and easy to remember. Even before Discovery bought WarnerMedia, Perrette, Bloys, and Zaslav "heavily debated" the name change for the streaming service, according to Perrette.
The newly rebuilt Max platform will be easier to use with simplified navigation and more personalization features than HBO Max. Max will feature a more prominent experience for kids, with a new default kids’ profile for new subscribers along with accompanying parental controls. Max also will feature a new video-playback experience to deliver "smooth and cinematic video" to users.
The retirement of the HBO Max name comes after more than a decade of HBO digital brand extensions. With the name change to Max, Warner Bros. Discovery acquired rights to the domain name "max.com" earlier this year. Previously, it was registered to and used by Max International, a nutritional supplement products company.
Analysts view
Dan Rayburn (Streaming Media Expert) main take-aways in an interview were:
"Highlighted how they need to not only grow subscribers but "retain" them and drive "free cash flow". They know that getting to profitability has to be the number one goal and it is no longer about "growing at all costs".
Mentioned how the combined service, from a content depth standpoint, will help them combat churn, but to date, the company has never disclosed what churn looks like or how it is trending. In fairness to WBD, none of the other streamers have disclosed these numbers either.
Said sports would be a big part of the max offering, but said they were not going to discuss those plans for a few months.
They pointed out that unlike other competitors that are in a lot of different businesses, WBD does one thing, create content. They do have more focus from a business standpoint than some of their other competitors"
Conclusion
In conclusion, Warner Bros. Discovery's new streaming service, Max, seems to be a well-thought-out strategy to compete in the ever-growing streaming wars. The blending of HBO Max and Discovery+ will give subscribers access to a diverse range of content, including the DC universe, Harry Potter, and iconic franchises. The ability to personalize recommendations and the affordable pricing plans will be a key selling point for the service. With the launch set for May 23 in the US, it remains to be seen how the service will perform against its competitors, but Warner Bros. Discovery's CEO, David Zaslav, is optimistic about the future.
"We believe that Max is going to be a game-changer in the streaming industry. The merger of these two platforms gives us an opportunity to control our own destiny and be the most successful maker of content in the industry," says Zaslav.
But the burning question is: will it work? Will it win the streaming wars?
This article is put together with the use of ChatGPT4 and sources including WBD, NYT, CNBC, Variety.
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MLBAM, BAMTech, Disney, Deltatre, USTA, EXOS. Sports, media, entertainment executive at the crossroad of revenue generation, innovation, intrepreneurship, and investment. Founder, NYVC Sports.
1 年Keep posting Carlo De Marchis…love the beautiful mind!
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1 年Thanks for Posting.