WarnerMedia has officially revealed the pricing and details for its ad-supported version of HBO Max.
As part of its Upfront presentation, WarnerMedia announced it will debut its ad-supported HBO Max subscription tier at $9.99 per month starting the first week of June. At that point, existing subscribers will be able to choose whether to continue using the ad-free version of HBO Max at $14.99 per month or switch to the less expensive tier. Those who subscribe to the ad-supported option will have access to "the full HBO Max content catalog, excluding Warner Bros. Same-Day Premiere films debuting in theaters and on HBO Max throughout 2021."
“HBO Max with Ads provides a superior marketing environment, featuring the lightest ad load in the streaming industry, driving engagement with consumers and efficacy for our partners,” said JP Colaco, Head of Advertising Sales for WarnerMedia. “Couple that with beloved premium content spanning all genres and audience segments, and we are delivering the best ad offering available in market today.”
Reports of WarnerMedia working on an ad-supported version of HBO Max date back to Sept. 2020. The company later confirmed the news at the Morgan Stanley’s Technology, Media & Telecom conference in March. "It turns out that most people on this planet are not wealthy,” said WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar. "If we can wake up and use price and be able to kind of invent and do things elegantly through advertising to reduce the price of the service, I think that’s a fantastic thing for fans.”
For the time being, the ad-supported version of HBO Max is still more expensive than the domestic version of Disney+ ($7.99 per month) but cheaper than a U.S. Netflix subscription ($13.99). and the same price as a premium monthly subscription to Paramount+. As a way of keeping up with the competition, Paramount+ will unveil its own ad-supported tier at $4.99 per month around the same time HBO Max launches its version.
In a bid to further boost its HBO Max subscriptions, WarnerMedia announced a number of brand-new animated projects at its Upfront presentation. Their ranks include new Batman and Superman animated series, along with four Adult Swim digital shorts series inspired by the shows Rick and Morty, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Robot Chicken and Your Pretty Face Is Going to Hell.
Source: WarnerMedia