Discussion thread about the new streaming platform from WarnerMedia (owner of Warner Bros and HBO), HBO Max.
The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age report that HBO has filed for a local trademark for HBO Max. We already have Netflix, Stan, Amazon Prime, Hayu, Foxtel Now and Tubi, with Disney+ and Apple TV+ still to come. Will HBO Max make it No.9?
If you include 10 All Access and Kayo that would make it 11.
Itâs getting out of hand.
Put it this way - I doubt HBO will renew their deal with Foxtel when it expires. Showtime will probably do the same with Stan in a few years when their deal ends
I thought Foxtel would want to try and renew a deal with HBO to keep people subscribed , other than people who have Foxtel for sport.
I was thinking in 2 or 3 years whenever the deal expires, Stan would try and get HBO content .
Legendary is a 10-episode series in which teams of âdivasâ battle against one another in a fashion and dance challenge known as âvoguingâ â a competitive style of modern dance featuring over-the-top fashion and choreography based on poses struck by catwalk models.
The Greatest Space (working title) is a 10-episode design competition show that sees interior designers travel around the world to transform an eclectic mix of empty rooms into spectacular spaces. Working on locations from ballrooms to treehouses, the competing designers will battle to win the judgesâ favour.
Neither show above sound like HBO content at all, will be interesting to see how the service looks at lunch content wise.
From what I have read it will be the Warner Bros streaming app, so it should you would think include a wide range of movies and television series.
In the US, Friends is moving over from Netflix to this new streaming service. If it expands into Australia, it will be moved from Stan, who will also lose Seinfeld in the wake of Netflix securing global streaming rights from 2021, as well as the Disney content when Disney+ launches here in November.
Also, it is looking to pick up streaming rights for The Big Bang Theory and Two & A Half Men, reported to be worth over $1 billion. The former is currently available on Netflix in many countries outside the US & Canada, including the UK, Australia & NZ.
Seems strange to me to use the HBO name then when the content wouldnât really align with what they are well known for, but then again I could be a little naive on that I guess.
Not long after Warner took over they said that HBO had to make more hits and make more money.
I guess the HBO Max strategy fits the latter. Hopefully it wonât lead to a drop in quality for the linear channel.
Wouldnât it be stranger if their streaming service was called Warner Bros and they obliterated the HBO brand? I guess they just went with what is likely to be more appealing to subscribers and have longevity, so HBO is better.
Iâm excited about this, Iâm an HBO fan although I think that with the influx of many streaming services, itâs again pushing some people to go back to illegally downloading contents. Highly fragmented streaming services does not make much economic sense to fee paying customers.
This is a really interesting discussion point that is worthy of a thread to itself
But hasnât Hulu had their name trademarked here for years and we donât have Hulu in Australia.
Yeah I agree with the comment above about illegal downloading. I donât want more than 3 streaming services. I am contemplating getting rid of Stan at the moment and Netflix is something I wouldnât get rid of.
I actually find Stanâs contents to be more curated than Netflix so I actually gave Netflix the flick but then again I only got budget for three streaming services and two digital news subscription.
How so?
I think itâs about choice for consumers, where they get an offer of streaming services that they can pick and ignore others.
Wonder when Foxtelâs exclusivity to HBOs streaming rights ends. Canât be too far away if trademarks are been made.
In Australia, HBO content lives on Foxtel under a deal that is widely known to run for at least couple more years.
SMH. April 14, 2019.