HBO Max’s Password-Sharing Crackdown Will Expand Globally in 2026

HBO Max will be cracking down on password sharing around the world. The company will expand its enforcement of the practice in 2026.

The streamer first started cracking down on password sharing in the United States late last August. Subscribers are now able to add an additional out-of-household account for $7.99 a month. Before that August change, Warner Bros. Discovery had been testing for months to determine who may or may not be a “legitimate user,” as CEO and President for Warner Bros. Discovery Global Streaming and Games JB Perrette described the plan.

On Thursday during the company’s fourth quarter earnings call for 2025, WBD revealed that the streaming limitations would be expanding. This news came as part of an answer about which levers the company plans to pull to grow HBO Max. Password crackdowns have proven to be a lucrative way to both boost revenue and subscriptions. Netflix, for example, saw 9 million more subscribers after its first wave of password crackdowns in 2024. The caveat is that password crackdowns do not lead to consistent growth, and they often infuriate subscribers. There’s typically one big wave of new users who were previously sharing an account before the streamer plateaus to its new normal.

And we’re not exactly sure what that new normal may be. During the same earnings call, WBD announced it will no longer be reporting the subscriber numbers for HBO Max — another streaming trend that was started by Netflix.

As for the other ways WBD is planning to expand HBO Max, Perrette emphasized the streamer will be expanding into more European markets, investing in more product enhancements, focusing on ways to improve subscriber churn and retention and optimizing its monetization structure. That requires both determining the best price point on the consumer side and focusing more on ad sales for the streamer.

“We are very early in the ad sales growth trajectory, based on the fact that our fill rates are still relatively low internationally, and we’re still launching a new markets with our ad tiers. We think there’s further upside in the years to come,” Perrette said.

There is one more way HBO Max plans to grow — by creating more long-running content that will encourage viewers to both tune in and keep their subscriptions. Perrette pointed to “The Pitt” as a good example of a show designed to run for several years. HBO Max will also have 10 years of Harry Potter once the series premieres at the beginning of 2027.

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