HBO Max will be just Max as it dives deeper into reality TV

Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. is renaming its streaming service Max, dropping HBO from the brand and bolstering its unscripted programming in a bid to attract more subscribers. The company unveiled the new name at a press event in Burbank, California, on Wednesday, where CEO David Zaslav and his team were set to announce details including a new Harry Potter series. Prices will range from $16 to $20 a month without advertising and $10 a month with ads, mostly in line with the current service. Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs Zaslav merged his former company, reality TV programmer Discovery Communications, with the parent of the century-old Warner Bros. studios last year to compete with Netflix Inc. and Walt Disney Co., the world’s largest entertainment companies. They have more than twice as many streaming customers as Warner Bros., which had 96 million subscribers at the end of 2022. Related: Streaming TV advertising—what marketers should know While HBO remains the gold standard for producing critically acclaimed TV, Zaslav believes a portion of the country won’t pay for the service because it’s associated with high prices and coastal elites. HBO won the most Emmy Awards of any network last year and has already delivered two hit shows this year in “The Last of Us” and the latest season of “Succession.” Read more: How HBO is bringing ads to ‘Succession’ A new brand name and a deep library of unscripted programming like “Naked and Afraid” from Warner Bros.’ Discovery Channel could speak to viewers who don’t currently pay for HBO. It could also keep them using the app more, which appeals to advertisers. The company will launch the service on May 23, with the slogan, “The One to Watch.” Investors soured on media and entertainment companies last year after Netflix reported a drop in subscribers. Shares of Warner Bros. have risen more than 50% this year, but remain about 40% below where they stood when the merger was completed in April 2022. They were trading at $14.13, down 5.4%, in late afternoon trading Wednesday in New York. Read more: New industry guidelines for 2024 upfronts The rebranded Max service is the latest step in Zaslav’s unwinding of steps taken by his predecessor, Jason Kilar, who made streaming the top priority at the company. Under Zaslav, Warner Bros. has increased the number of shows the company sells to competing streaming services, restored theaters as the key platform for new movies, eliminated jobs and cut back on spending—as evidenced by Wednesday’s comparatively low-key press event. He has also resumed selling the company’s streaming services through Amazon.com Inc.More news: A+E approaches streaming TV wars with prudence At the same time, Zaslav and his competitors continue to grapple with declining numbers of people who pay for traditional cable TV. Those losses threaten the profitable networks of companies like Warner Bros., Disney and Paramount Global. Streaming services were supposed to counter those declines, but remain largely unprofitable. Slower growth at Netflix has raised concerns that streaming may never be as lucrative as cable was for traditional media companies. —Bloomberg News Subscribe to Ad Age Sign up now for the latest industry news and analysis Click here

HBO Max will be just Max as it dives deeper into reality TV

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