HBO Max & Discovery+ Will Merge Into One Streaming Platform
HBO Max and Discovery+ are merging into one streaming platform. HBO Max launched in May of 2020 and hosts AT&T’s WarnerMedia content, including DC Entertainment, Studio Ghibli, HBO, and Cartoon Network. Discovery+ launched in the U.S. in January of 2021 with content from channels under Discovery Inc., including The History Channel, The Food Network, and HGTV. An announcement late last year revealed that both parent companies would merge under AT&T with the name Warner Bros. Discovery.
The speculation that the two services will merge into one has been answered with a Collider article confirming that HBO Max and Discovery+ will combine into one platform as a bundle. Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels, who will also become CFO of Warner Bros. Discovery, made the announcement at the Deutsche Bank 30th Annual Media, Internet & Telecom Conference. There is no confirmed date on when the merge will happen as the WarnerMedia and Discover Inc. $43 billion deal has yet to close.
There is hope that the merger will bring about more original content for subscribers to enjoy. With Discovery’s core female-leaning audience and HBO Max’s male-leaning audience, the combined service will increase its diverse base, aiding in more varied content. There is also no news on how the service will go about pricing and the inclusion of ads in its bundle as both services, as they stand, currently have both an ad and ad-free option. Fans of both streaming platforms will have to wait until the deal’s ink has dried to see what’s in store for the evolution of HBO Max and Discovery+’s content.
Source: Collider