Warner Bros. Discovery is likely to keep Discovery+ as an individual streaming service even after it launches a combined service with HBO Max later this year.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, while the combined service is still set to launch, Discovery+ will remain as a standalone, lower-cost option for anyone who’s not looking for scripted entertainment programming. The decision may help retain subscribers who would otherwise move away from the HBO Max and Discovery+ combined service due to a higher price. The media giant first announced the plan of the new service last year, owing to the fact that both Discovery+ and HBO Max had similar content and subscriber bases.
Warner's Combined HBO-Discovery Streaming Service
WBD's yet-to-be-named new streaming platform will launch in Spring 2023. The merged super service will contain shows from HBO, HBO Max and Discovery. Some shows that will feature on it include The Last of Us (HBO), Hacks (HBO Max) alongside Discovery content from Magnolia Network, HGTV and Discovery.
Warner Bros.'s merger with Discovery Inc. this past April has been a period of major transition for the organization. In August, the company began abruptly canceling many projects that were to be released on HBO Max. The unexpected content purge caused a major controversy in the industry. At the time, an official spokesperson from the company claimed that the decision to axe so many projects was because of the upcoming combined service. "As we work toward bringing our content catalogs together under one platform, we will be making changes to the content offering available on both HBO Max and Discovery+... That will include the removal of some content from both platforms," HBO Max wrote in a statement.
Many of the shows cut from the HBO Max catalog will soon be sold to other streamers. Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav discussed the decision to sell their original content to other platforms saying,"Our whole library went on HBO Max, and we weren’t selling any of it, but it was all on there. Most of this is not being watched. Or, we don’t think anybody is subscribing." Zaslav also attempted to defend the HBO Max content purge claiming that it was part of a "reimagining" of how the conglomerate works. "Let me be clear," Zaslav said in regard to the cuts. "We did not get rid of any show that was helping us."
Project cancellations aside, the organization also cut many jobs and is still dealing with a $50 billion debt load after the merger. In the third quarter of 2022, Warner Bros. Discovery reported a loss of $2.31 billion, largely due to Discovery’s acquisition.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter