Latest news with #Perrette
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Watch: HBO streaming service changing back from Max to HBO Max
May 15 (UPI) -- HBO has announced that the name of its streaming service is changing back from Max to HBO Max this summer. HBO Max is what the platform was known as when it launched in 2020, but the HBO portion of the name was dropped in 2023 as its parent company sought to give it its own identity. The company announced it is going back to its original moniker at the Warner Bros. Discovery upfront presentation in New York on Wednesday. "No consumer today is saying they want more content, but most consumers are saying they want better content," said JB Perrette, President and CEO of Streaming. Perrette said the idea to put HBO back in the platform's name is a "testament to WBD's willingness to keep boldly iterating its strategy and approach -- leaning heavily on consumer data and insights." To celebrate the move, the company released a hilarious video of famous TV couple reunions set to Pat Benatar's classic song, "We Belong."
Muscat Daily
14-05-2025
- Business
- Muscat Daily
HBO Max is back: Warner Bros. Discovery to revert streaming service name
Max brand to be retired as company leans into HBO's legacy of quality After just one year under the simplified moniker Max , Warner Bros. Discovery is reversing course and bringing back the HBO Max brand, the name the streaming platform launched with in 2020. The rebrand, set to roll out this summer, was announced on Wednesday during the company's upfront presentation to advertisers in New York. Executives cited consumer sentiment, global momentum, and the enduring power of the HBO name as key drivers of the move. 'This evolution has also been influenced by changing consumer needs,' said JB Perrette, President and CEO of Global Streaming. 'No consumer today is saying they want more content — they want better content.' The move appears to be an acknowledgment that the decision to drop 'HBO' in 2023 — in an effort to broaden the platform's appeal beyond prestige television — failed to resonate with audiences. While the rebrand was never directly labelled a misstep, Warner Bros. Discovery did refer to the reversal as a sign of its willingness to 'boldly iterate' based on viewer data and real-world response. A brand built on prestige HBO has long been synonymous with quality storytelling, with recent global hits like The White Lotus and The Last of Us reinforcing its brand cachet. The HBO Max name, according to executives, better reflects the platform's unique proposition: 'content that is recognised as unique and worth paying for,' said Casey Bloys, Chairman and CEO of HBO and Max Content. In a candid interview, Perrette revealed that the decision to revert came after months of analysis and discussion with Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav. 'David said, 'The consumer always tells you whether you're right or wrong… Let's go back. That sounds like HBO,'' Perrette recounted. New look, familiar feel Subscribers may have already noticed early signs of the shift. The Max interface recently changed its colour scheme from blue to dark grey, echoing the original HBO Max aesthetic. The new logo will also revive the rounded letters first used in the 2020 branding. Despite the challenges of integrating Discovery+ content and new subscription tiers for sport and news, the streaming platform has turned a profit. Projections estimate HBO Max could surpass 150 million subscribers by 2026. Legacy meets strategy Since the $43 billion Warner Media-Discovery merger in 2022, the company has sought to find its footing in an increasingly competitive streaming landscape. While the streamlined 'Max' aimed for breadth, its return to HBO Max reflects a renewed focus on depth — and distinction. As Zaslav summed it up: 'Today, we are bringing back HBO, the brand that represents the highest quality in media, to further accelerate our growth in the years ahead.'
Fast Company
14-05-2025
- Business
- Fast Company
They were right the first time: Max is now HBO Max, again
The streaming service Max is officially reverting to its previous name, HBO Max, which is great news for people who never stopped calling it HBO Max in the first place. Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) announced today that the streaming platform would be again called HBO Max this summer as part of a shift in strategy to focus on HBO programming and other premium content that distinguishes the streamer from its competitors. WBD first removed the name HBO Max in favor of the simplified Max in 2023, when it merged with Discovery+. After two years of testing it out, it seems viewers really just want more of the shows they like, not more of absolutely anything possible. Some viewers might've noticed the quiet rebrand of Max's visual identity last month, with set its logo and UI in a neutral HBO-style black-and-white color scheme, and which turned out to be an Easter Egg of where the platform was headed. The overhauled identity now has the addition a new 'HBO Max' name and logo, which stacks the HBO and Max logos together into one. '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,' WBD president and CEO of streaming JB Perrette said in a statement. The company said returning to the HBO brand will 'amplify the uniqueness that subscribers can expect' and comes as the streaming landscape grows increasingly crowded. WBD is planning a CNN streaming service to launch this fall, and Disney on Tuesday announced its own all-access ESPN streaming service, expected to launch around the same time. Meanwhile, Netflix is piloting features that could allow its user interface to better compete with video content on social media platforms like TikTok. All this competition means a clearly defined value proposition is increasingly important to winning consumers and owning part of the market. So with more options than ever for what to watch, WBD is going back to betting its library is what keeps consumers subscribed. As Perrette said, 'our programming just hits different.' That positioning marks a big shift from when the streaming service originally added a massive quantity of Discovery+ content, including guilty pleasure unscripted shows, to its catalogue two years ago. Now, WBD has made the decision to let other streaming platforms fulfill viewers' basic needs with quantity, and position HBO Max as the quality choice, with prestige shows like Succession, Game of Thrones, and The White Lotus alongside box-office movies, docuseries, and other top-performing, top-tier content. There's some recognition that the switch to Max a few years ago led to real brand dilution that company now wants to correct, if you read between the lines of WBD executive statements. 'The powerful growth we have seen in our global streaming service is built around the quality of our programming,' WBD CEO David Zaslav said in a statement. 'Today, we are bringing back HBO, the brand that represents the highest quality in media, to further accelerate that growth in the years ahead.' Indeed, branding experts were flummoxed by HBO Max changing its name to Max when it happened, reasoning the streaming service had gotten rid of a valuable piece of brand equity. Going back to the old HBO Max name is an admission that's the case.
Tom's Guide
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Tom's Guide
Max just revealed password-sharing crackdown details — and it's bad news
Last month, Max revealed that it's following in Netflix's footsteps with a password-sharing crackdown of its own. Now, we know when that crackdown is coming. In an earnings call yesterday (May 8), Warner Bros. Discovery's streaming executive JB Perrette revealed that the streaming service will hit "full steam" on its password sharing crackdown in the next 12-18 months (h/t The Hollywood Reporter). Dubbed a 'password-sharing crackdown initiative' by Perrette, Max is doing what Netflix and other streaming services are doing, and making your account tied to a home network. Here's how that practically works, based on what we've seen from Netflix and heard from Max. Say you have a Max account. Anyone physically in your household will be able to use your Max account, no problem. But anyone outside the household will need an "Extra Member Add-on." Back when Max announced this new add-on, Perrette said, 'Extra Member Add-On and Profile Transfer are two key Max advancements, designed to help viewers with a new way to enjoy our best-in-class content at an exceptional value, and offer subscribers greater flexibility in managing their accounts.' Translation: We're sick of you freeloaders getting Max without paying. Netflix doesn't have to deal with this. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. To set up an Extra Member Add-on, the existing primary account holder will add the feature to their account. This will then open up a slot for the primary account holder to invite a friend or family member outside their household to create a separate, standalone account with an adult profile under the same subscription. This new standalone account will have its own login credentials with almost all of the benefits involved in the primary account owner's base plan. The user associated with the account can even transfer over data from an existing adult profile, including watch history, recommendations and settings. There is one notable catch. The added-on member can only stream from one profile on one device at a time. And only one individual can be associated with an extra member add-on. Of course, you also have to pay for this privilege. An Extra Member Add-on costs $7.99 per month, regardless of the Max subscription tier of the primary account holder. Bundle subscribers will not be eligible for the add-on at all. That price point means Max's password-crackdown could cost you $1 a month more than its Netflix counterpart. Netflix lets you add a member for $6.99 a month if you have the Basic tier (with ads) or $8.99 a month if you have the Standard tier or higher. Malcolm has been with Tom's Guide since 2022, and has been covering the latest in streaming shows and movies since 2023. He's not one to shy away from a hot take, including that "John Wick" is one of the four greatest films ever made. Here's what he's been watching lately:
Business Insider
08-05-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
HBO moochers rejoice: You still have a little time before the Max password-sharing crackdown begins
Warner Bros. Discovery is putting a stop to password mooching — eventually. HBO's parent company is now telling users that they need their own Max accounts to catch up on "The White Lotus." WBD wants users to make their own accounts, or get their account holder to pay an extra $8 per month to give them access. Netflix popularized that "paid sharing" strategy to great success, and Disney is doing the same. But those freeloading off their friend's account don't have to reach for their credit cards just yet. Although WBD is starting to gently encourage freeloaders to pay up, executives said they won't play hardball for a while. "It's very soft messaging that will start getting firmer and more visible to subscribers over the months to come," WBD global streaming head JB Perrette said on the company's earnings call Thursday. This paid-sharing initiative has a 12- to 18-month timeline, Perrette said. It's starting in the US and will move next year to the rest of the world, where Max is still rolling out. Anti-mooching messaging will get "more assertive" later this year and in early 2026, Perrette said. Paid sharing could boost Max subscribers WBD isn't alone in following Netflix's lead, as NBC is warning Peacock subscribers not to share passwords with their friends. Paramount, Amazon, and Apple haven't done so yet, but certainly could if Disney and WBD's paid-sharing strategies pay off. Max has made progress since its launch five years ago and rebrand from HBO Max in 2023. WBD has 57.6 million streaming subscribers in the US, up about 5 million from a year ago. The company has also grown its global customer base by more than 22 million customers, though that's largely due to rollouts in Southeast Asia and Europe. Streaming advertising revenue surged 35% from last year in the first quarter. A paid-sharing rollout could further boost WBD's streaming subscriber count, though engagement — and therefore advertising — could take a hit if freeloaders conclude that Max isn't worth paying for.
