Max, It Is!
Issue #119 — Warner Bros. Discovery's HBO Max will undergo a makeover this spring. A move that reflects its widening content options.
Max, It Is!
The name was not a natural fit for the streamer, but in its three years of existence, HBO Max stood as the streaming service originating out of then WarnerMedia and now Warner Bros. Discovery.
This past Wednesday, WBD CEO David Zaslav officially announced that HBO Max would undergo a name change, dropping HBO and remaining with just Max.
The reveal was unsurprising, considering the new name had been floating around for weeks. It comes with a new tagline, “The one to watch,” and a new color scheme emphasizing blue over purple.
Zaslav notes that Max will represent the best of WBD, created from the WarnerMedia and Discovery Inc. merger in 2022, and will be positioned to go directly against Netflix and Disney Plus. Currently, HBO Max stands at 80 million subscribers.
By moving to Max, executives hope to attract a broader audience to the streaming. HBO Max, driven by the name HBO, came off as more adult-oriented —after all, HBO is indeed the place for top-tier-adult fare programming.
Switching to Max will allow the streamer to add programming for kids and families and include programming from the Discovery side. It will also protect the HBO brand, which executives feared would become diluted with the addition of reality-based programming.
Pricing will remain as is, with $9.99 for the ad-supported version and $14.99 for the ad-free version. An additional tier, including 4K video quality, was announced and will cost $19.99 monthly.
Subscribers based in the U.S. will encounter Max beginning May 23, followed by Latin America later in the year, with the rest of the world in 2024.
What will not be integrated with Max will be Discovery Plus, which remains a stand-alone product. Subscribers had shown resistance to moving to a more expensive subscription plan, according to WBD research.
Once things are fully in operation at Max, expect programming like sports from its WBD Sports division and news from CNN to be added into the mix. Adding sports and news to the streamer is expected to be a differentiator as it will afford WBD to flex its content muscle and utilize its full array of programming.
Max will debut with a new interphase and better user experience, a relief for users who were frustrated by HBO Max’s experience.
WBD, which for the first year in its existence has been on a cost-cutting spree, spearheaded the move that embraced quality over quantity when it comes to streaming.
Max will be the true test of that and the first real product launched by this current regime when it debuts.
(CNBC, Deadline, Variety, The Current )
ABC NEWS RECAP
ABC News’ Kim Godwin Is Under Fire
It looks like ABC News president Kim Godwin has detractors within her ranks. In the past week, critical pieces about her tenure as the boss of the news division were published by Page Six, New York Post, and The Daily Beast. The opposition against her seems to have escalated after some senior and longtime executives were let go during the first round of Disney-instituted layoffs, expected to shed around 7000 jobs. Page Six described the move as payback against those leaking stories about her. Meanwhile, The New York Post says that a “culture of fear” now exists at the network, with employees wondering if they are next on her hit list and could be out of a job. The Daily Beast’s Confider newsletter reveals amidst all the tumult, Godwin has been working on and shopping around a book about leadership. (Page Six, New York Post, The Daily Beast)
Al Jazeera English Moving Live Programming From London To Qatar
Al Jazeera is looking to centralize its broadcast operations for its English news network Al Jazeera English in its headquarters in Qatar. The service launched 17 years ago, had plans to have its broadcasts originate from various global locations, including Washington, D.C., London, Doha, and Kuala Lumpur. Their D.C. and Kuala Lumpur centers closed sometime back, and now comes word that it’s moving its live broadcast operations out of London. Newsgathering operations, reporters, and camera crews will remain, as will the documentaries and talk show units, but live programming will be shifted to Doha. About 40 positions could be affected by this move, while staff working on the affected shows have been offered the opportunity to relocate to Qatar. (Deadline)
NFL Sunday Ticket Pricing Revealed By YouTubeTV
NFL fans looking to watch out of the market of games this fall need to remember that the NFL Sunday Ticket package has moved from DirecTV to YouTubeTV. The digital video pay-TV distributor this past week announced pricing details for NFL Sunday Ticket, options dependent on whether one is a subscriber of YouTubeTV or not. Subscribers can purchase the package for $349 for the season (there is a presale price of $249 available for a limited time only), or they can get an expanded tier which includes NFL Red Zone for $389 (presale $289). Non-subscribers will have to fork $449 (presale $349) and $489 (presale $389) for the NFL Red Zone option. YouTubeTV, which is paying $2 billion per year for the package, needs to also work on its latency issues, one which puts its live feeds behind those watching games via digital antenna or cable. A spokesperson says that they are “working on building a high-quality Sunday Ticket experience.” (The Holywood Reporter, ProFootballTalk)
QUICK RECAP
Marcus Spears re-signs with ESPN. (New York Post)
Former CBS Sports executive Tony Petitti was named the next Big Ten commissioner. (Peter Thamel/Twitter)
Cari Lloyd joins Fox Sports’ Women’s World Cup Australia and News Zealand 2023 coverage as an analyst. (Fox Sports Press Pass)
Profile: MSNBC's Chris Hayes on anchoring ten years of All In. (TVNewser)
Profile: Former ESPNer Michelle Beadle on her new show and her new peace. (Awful Announcing)
Profile: Rupert Murdoch and the succession issue he has to deal with. (Vanity Fair)
Awards: Fox Sports is a finalist for six Shorty Awards. (Shorty Awards)
Awards: Peabody Award nominations have been announced. (Peabody)
Awards: NBC News, CBS News, MSNBC, CNN, ESPN, and Bloomberg News are finalists for eight Deadline Club Awards. (Deadline Club)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Trial delayed till Tuesday. (Ted Johnson/Twitter)
Dominion vs. Fox News: What to expect from the upcoming trial. (Variety)
Dominion vs. Fox News: America prepares for a historic trial. (Axios)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Fox News apologizes to the judge for the misunderstanding. (CNN)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Why hasn’t the network settled this lawsuit? (Los Angeles Times)
Dominion vs. Fox News: No audio or video recording allowed during proceedings. (New York Times)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Trial could affect the future of libel laws. (New York Times)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Abby Grossberg adds Suzanne Scott as a defendant to her lawsuit. (CNN)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Who will get picked to be on the jury? (The Washington Post)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Network is still the most trusted and most watched, according to a poll. (Mediaite)
Dominion vs. Fox News: New sanctions imposed on Fox News. (The New York Times)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Newsworthiness is not a defense for Fox News. (MediaPost)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Bret Baier is on an island at Fox News of his own when it comes to conservative sensibilities reporting. (NPR)
Dominion vs. Fox News: network’s “credibility problem” at issue. (The Guardian)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Abby Grossberg amends legal complaint against the network. (The Daily Beast)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Options limited for Dominion during the trial. (New York Times)
Dominion vs. Fox News: January 6 cannot be brought up during the trial. (CNN)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Barry Tiller believes Fox News should lose. (Semafor)
Dominion vs. Fox News: Fox News settled a defamation lawsuit with a Venezuelan businessman. (Law & Crime)
Doris Burke hopes ESPN extends her contract. (Awful Announcing)
Fox Sports and NBC Sports announce their broadcast teams for the USFL. (Front Office Sports)
NBC News EVP Janelle Rodriguez on how the news division is approaching the digital revolution. (TVNewser)
Comcast and Disney are set to battle it out over the upcoming NBA media rights. (Front Office Sports)
The bankruptcy case against Diamond Sports Group has started. (Next TV)
Jim Nantz defends Tony Romo amidst all the criticism. (Awful AnnCNN'sng)
CNN's Chris Licht met with GOP a’ti-‘woke’ 2024 presidential candidate. (The Daily Beast)
Premier Rugby Sevens is coming to CBS Sports, FS1. (Sportico)
Former CNN media correspondent to pen new book about Fox News. (TVNewser)
Peacock is now available in the metaverse. (The Hollywood Reporter)
Fox News to host first Republican presidential primary. (Aidan McLaughlin/Twitter)
Fox Corp. sued by investors over 2020 election claims. (NBC News)
WBD is slowly starting to wind down its regional sports network (RSNs) operations. (Front Office Sports)
What are the best and worst streaming services? (Variety)
The Masters delivers for CBS Sports with 16.2 million viewers. (Paramount Press Express)
BBC News reveals its coronation plans. (BBC Media WBD'se)
WBD's David Zaslav did not drink the streaming cool-aid juice. (The Wall Street JCNN'sl)
CNN's Chris Licht defends how the network Trump's Trump’s indictment. (Twitter/Semafor)
What can be learned after watching 18 hours of GB News? (PressGCNN'se)
CNN's Audie Cornish is trying a new way to inform viewers. (The New Yorker)
FBN Prime is coming back for season four starting Monday, April 24. (TVNewser)
Correction: In issue 118 of the email version of the newsletter, we incorrectly referred to Dominion Voting Systems as Dominion Voter Systems.
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A MarkHenry Media LLC publication - Issue #119 - 2023