Max will be rebranded HBO Max... again

HBO Max interface
New (old) name Max is getting a new (old) name and becoming HBO Max. (Warner Bros. Discovery)

As the saying goes, everything old is new again and it can’t be truer for the streaming service Max.

Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of HBO, announced on Wednesday, “Same app. New-ish name. The plot twist everyone’s been waiting for: Max is becoming HBO Max! Coming Home this summer.”

The company is leaning into reverting the name, adding a meme to the press release, from “Friends” with David Schwimmer’s Ross yelling, “We were on a break!”

Part of the reason for the change is, according to The New York Times is that people subscribe, paying $17 a month to watch HBO content like “The Last of Us,” “The White Lotus,” and not much more.

When the app became Max, it also offered shows from Discovery networks, but the reality shows featured there “watered down” the HBO brand, the Times said.

The return to HBO Max, company leaders hope it will bring with it less volume but more quality, CNBC reported.

“We will continue to focus on what makes us unique — not everything for everyone in a household, but something distinct and great for adults and families,” JB Perrette, president and CEO of streaming at Warner Bros. Discovery, said in a statement. “It’s really not subjective, not even controversial — our programming just hits different.”

“The powerful growth we have seen in our global streaming service is built around the quality of our programming,” David Zaslav, CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, said. “Today, we are bringing back HBO, the brand that represents the highest quality in media, to further accelerate that growth in the years ahead.”

The app hasn’t been known only as HBO Max or Max.

The Times said that the streaming app has had several names including HBO Go in 2008, then HBO Now in 2015, before it was HBO Max in 2020 and Max in 2023.

Other companies have been announcing their new apps during Upfronts week in New York. ESPN will have what CNBC called a “flagship streaming” service called ESPN, while Fox will launch Fox One.

0
Comments on this article
0
On AirKONO 101.1 - San Antonio's Greatest Hits Logo

mobile apps

Everything you love about kono1011.com and more! Tap on any of the buttons below to download our app.

amazon alexa

Enable our Skill today to listen live at home on your Alexa Devices!