Max (Streaming Service)

[Viator]

I've been pumped for HBOMax for a lot of reasons. That said..perhaps we should move the discussion of the streaming service to the proper thread?

Max (Streaming Service)

Was surprised there was no thread for this. Launch date revealed to be May 27th:

forums.insideuniversal.net

 

[SeventyOne]

I guess beyond Ghibli, I don't see what I would be getting from HBO Max that I wouldn't mostly have with HBO, unless all future WB releases will stream exclusively on HBO Max?
EDIT:

I don't know what that is, but the name sounds rad and I'm looking it up.

It is a barely watchable attempt to re-make the completely unwatchable, worst-sequel-of-all-time Highlander II. Fans hated the movie so much (the first scene retcons the immortals as being from another planet) that it reworks the plot slightly, adds deleted scenes, and removes all references to space aliens. The Snyder Cut of its day, decades before Twitter.

 

[Viator]

HBO Max's library is extensively rich. Sopranos alone is a reason I would buy it. Add to that The Wire, Man of Steel, Blade Runner + 2049, Godfather, freaking SESAME STREET, etc. I think it's got every other streaming service beat... only problem for me is its hefty price. I will definitely look into buying this next year.

To come back to this--I've been on the train of HBOMax once they revealed it being the entire Warner Media conglomerate (and that's not even considering the deal they have with BBC & GKids/Studio Ghibli). I genuinely wonder how much it'll take from the Disney+ pie, as I see it as a much better value with a really cheap price-point.

 

[quinnmac000]

I think it's a given that WB releases will be exclusive to HBO Max. All studios are going this direction. Disney with Disney+, and Universal with Peacock. The other studios like Sony and Lionsgate are the only ones doing licensing deals still.

Nah HBO Max is debuting with Universal titles as well as Peacock with some WB titles. HBO Channel has to be able to supplement their movies and it can't solely rely on Time Warner especially when Lionsgate and MGM already have exclusive deal with other premium pay-tv channels.

 

[TheGentTrent]

Nah HBO Max is debuting with Universal titles as well as Peacock with some WB titles. HBO Channel has to be able to supplement their movies and it can't solely rely on Time Warner especially when Lionsgate and MGM already have exclusive deal with other premium pay-tv channels.

That won't last forever though. HBO's deals with Fox and Universal expire in 2022 and it's almost a certainty that they won't be renewed.

 

[Nick]

Nah HBO Max is debuting with Universal titles as well as Peacock with some WB titles. HBO Channel has to be able to supplement their movies and it can't solely rely on Time Warner especially when Lionsgate and MGM already have exclusive deal with other premium pay-tv channels.

That's because licensing deals were already in place before the streaming wars really kicked into high gear. Disney still has some licensing deals around, but they're letting it all expire so that everything is exclusive to Disney+. I expect WB and Universal will be fairly similar - want a WB movie, gotta get HBO Max. Want a Universal movie, gotta get Peacock.

 

[quinnmac000]

WB worked out a last minute deal with Universal to ensure Potter films will show up on HBO Max despite Universal having exclusive cable and streaming rights until 2024 if I remember correctly. Terms of agreement unknown.

 

[tielo]

I once tried Netflix for free for 3 months and hardly did watch it. I was very disappointed that non of the movies I actually wanted to watch where on the service.
I looked into Disney but I have the animated movies I like on Blue-ray and don't care for Disney's $tar War$ or anything super hero. I tried to watch the Imaginering Story but that was so scrubbed clean it was unwatchable.
But HBO Max looks very good and I am surprisingly excited about the Looney Tunes Cartoons . No artsy fartsy re-imagining of the art style or cgi crap but real animation. And yep, here are to movies I like to watch. Not fond of the reality crap on there but that is probably inevitable as any channel has that and it's cheap to produce (stupid Dutch tv idea who invented big brother).

 

[JungleSkip]

WB worked out a last minute deal with Universal to ensure Potter films will show up on HBO Max despite Universal having exclusive cable and streaming rights until 2024 if I remember correctly. Terms of agreement unknown.

"Don't make us build a Fantastic Beasts land." - Universal's terms of agreement

 

[Viator]

WB worked out a last minute deal with Universal to ensure Potter films will show up on HBO Max despite Universal having exclusive cable and streaming rights until 2024 if I remember correctly. Terms of agreement unknown.

They also got something going on, as they have some of the original Toho Kaiju films; in subtitles.

 

[Nick]

Wish the app were available on Roku, but I can still access it through my apple TV or Xbox for now. As for the actual app itself...

I like the interface better than HBO Now, but it feels empty, much like Disney+ in how quiet it is while browsing. On Netflix, you constantly have trailers playing for things which sometimes gets me to watch something I wouldn't have otherwise. I wish these other services would incorporate that as well. Having pretty much all of the DCEU in one place + pretty much all Batman movies except the Nolan trilogy is nice.

Something I find a lot of Value in is the Cartoon Network section. They have such a deep catalog that's really never been all in one place like this. I was never a fan of the Disney cartoons growing up outside of Recess. Other than that, it was either Nickelodeon or Cartoon Network, so this is nice to have. The Adult Swim catalog is also on here. The Turner Classic Movie hub has quite a bit of great old movies as well and not an insignificant amount.

I plan to watch a watch a few of the originals, although their launch lineup is kinda weak (almost weaker than D+ when you account for how big The Mandalorian hit it)... if Love Life, Elmo, Looney Toons, Cratopia, Legendary and the On The Record documentary was all they were currently releasing. HBO themselves is currently releasing it's own week-to-week content within the service and new scripted and unscripted originals will continue to be released over the next few months, unlike what Disney+ did. I do find it hard to find some content on the service though if it's not displayed on the front page. You really need to search to find some things.

 

[MrRoamer]

I'm supposed to get it for free with AT&T 1000 Internet, but for some reason isn't letting me log in. Hopefully just opening day issues that will be fixed later on.

 

[JungleSkip]

Looking through the library, and this is easily the best opening day lineup of any streaming service, by a wide margin

 

[awhen]

I'm supposed to get it for free with AT&T 1000 Internet, but for some reason isn't letting me log in. Hopefully just opening day issues that will be fixed later on.

You have to activate it on att.com/myatt before it works. The MyAT&T app didn’t work, had to use the web page.

 

[Nick]

Looking through the library, and this is easily the best opening day lineup of any streaming service, by a wide margin

Yes, the library on this service is spectacular and will only grow over the coming months as they gain content back from other streamers or add from their library. Looking forward to being able to watch Fresh Prince whenever I want next month.

This service probably has the best shot at giving Netflix a run for it's money out of all in terms of what they are offering. I think a problem though that i'm seeing is brand confusion. It seems many are confused at how this is different than HBO Go or HBO Now and why they should sign-up. HBO Now should be shuttered imo since you get the same thing and more on HBO Max for the same price.

 

[MrRoamer]

You have to activate it on att.com/myatt before it works. The MyAT&T app didn’t work, had to use the web page.

Thank you so much!!! I was driving myself crazy with it, some browsers the login just crash some was fine, but all of it was just hidden

 

[TheGentTrent]

Huge fail on Warner's part for not having this ready to go on Roku or Amazon Fire.

 

[JungleSkip]

HBO Now should be shuttered imo since you get the same thing and more on HBO Max for the same price.

HBO Max replaced HBO Now on my phone. I thought it *was* replacing Now.

 

[Nick]

HBO Max replaced HBO Now on my phone. I thought it *was* replacing Now.

You can still sign up for HBO Now, although in most cases, an HBO Now subscription means and HBO Max subscription. I think HBO Now will go away once HBO Max is rolled out to all platforms. It's still not out to Roku or Amazon Fire, so Now is still needed for those platforms. They are in the process of working out a deal with Roku and if they can ever get it on Fire (which i've heard negotiations have stalled), then i'd assume HBO Now bites the dust officially.

It's confusing to the average consumer though to have three separate HBO streaming platforms (Go, Now and Max), so the quicker they can consolidate, the better. A tweet like this should never have to happen:

 

[quinnmac000]

Everyone who subscribes VIA paytv (AppleTV, Charter, Comcast) with the exception of Roku and Amazon will be upgraded to MAX.