You know that, as the HBO purist that I am, I’m not bowled over with how this all played out. You know I could grumble but, I’ll ease off and wait until WBD’s new streaming service, which combines WB content with Discovery content, a chance to prove itself when it debuts on Tuesday, May 23. This post is strictly the details via an official press release from WBD. They posted –
Warner Bros. Discovery (Nasdaq: WBD) today introduced Max, its enhanced streaming service, which will launch in the U.S. on May 23. Max is the destination for HBO Originals, Warner Bros. films, Max Originals, the DC universe, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, an expansive offering of kid’s content, and best-in-class programming across food, home, reality, lifestyle, and documentaries from leading brands like HGTV, Food Network, Discovery Channel, TLC, ID and more. Max will stand out amongst streamers by uniquely combining unrivaled breadth and superior quality with iconic franchises and strong product experience, all for a great value.
Introducing Max – the one to watch for every mood and every moment.
What is Max?
Max is an enhanced streaming service, delivering unparalleled quality content for everyone in the household. It is the destination for HBO Originals, Warner Bros. films, Max Originals, the DC universe, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, an expansive offering of kids content, and best-in-class programming across food, home, reality, lifestyle and documentaries from leading brands like HGTV, Food Network, Discovery Channel, TLC, ID and more.
How can I start watching Max?
New subscribers can sign up when Max launches on May 23 at Max.com and through participating partners.
JB Perrette, President & CEO, Global Streaming & Games, Warner Bros. Discovery.
SIGNING UP
Max will offer three pricing options, giving subscribers the choice to select which plan best fits the needs of their household.
Max Ad-Lite | $9.99/month or $99.99/year
2 concurrent streams, 1080p resolution, no offline downloads, 5.1 surround sound quality
Max Ad Free | $15.99/month or $149.99/year
2 concurrent streams, 1080 resolution, 30 offline downloads, 5.1 surround sound quality
Max Ultimate Ad Free | $19.99/month or $199.99/year
4 concurrent streams, up to 4K UHD resolution, 100 offline downloads, Dolby Atmos sound quality
Existing HBO Max subscribers will have access to Max at the same price as their HBO Max subscription and can visit http://help.hbomax.com/introducingMax to find out more. Additionally, HBO Max subscribers will still have access to their current plan features for a minimum of six months following launch. HBO Max subscribers’ profiles, settings, watch history, “Continue Watching,” and “My List” items will also migrate to Max so they can pick up streaming right where they left off.
Highlights include:
Premium Video Playback: A new video playback experience will deliver smooth and cinematic video to users, wherever and however they prefer to watch. Whether binging their favorites, watching offline on-the-go, or tuning in on Sunday nights for the latest episode of Succession, users can count on seamlessly diving into their preferred worlds.
Personalization: Max will expand personalization beyond just the home page, offering a differentiated and high-performing experience for every user across the whole service. By significantly increasing our investment in machine learning while maintaining an editorial voice, Max will deliver a unique human and machine approach that will help surface the best content for our users. 
More Prominent Kids Experience: At launch, Max will introduce a default kids profile for new subscribers along with accompanying parental controls. Parents can choose to customize settings and select to limit content for the kids profile by ratings: little kids (tv-y), big kids (tv-y7, tvy7-fv), big kids plus (tv-g, g), preteens (tv-pg/pg), or teens (tv-14, pg-13). Parents will also have the ability to set individual profile PINs to lock access to their adult profiles, as well as a parent code to lock their children inside of the Max kids experience.
Simplified Navigation: Max works harder so viewers don’t have to. Streamlined categories, improved content details pages, shortcuts, dedicated brand hubs and thematic content rails, make exploring the app and discovering new interests easier. The updated design coupled with a better personalization engine will help consumers quickly find and discover the best of what they are looking for.
4K UHD: The Ultimate Ad-Free tier of Max will have an expanded catalog of content available in 4K UHD including key programming such as Game of Thrones, The Last of Us, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, The Dark Knight Trilogy and more. All Warner Bros. movies released this year and going forward will also be available in 4K UHD when they arrive on Max following their theatrical windows.
CONTENT OFFERING 
Casey Bloys, Chairman and CEO, HBO and Max Content stated,
“The Max service is a wide-ranging mosaic of content that will be unmatched in the breadth, reach, and excellence of its offerings,” said“We are unique because we have the best-in-all-categories across the board by any measure – be they ratings, awards, fandom. We know we can satisfy any craving because we have the brands that people love. At Max, they will find what they want, when they want it.”
Newly announced titles include a Max Original Harry Potter series, a faithful adaptation of the beloved original book series by J.K. Rowling, who will serve as executive producer; a Max Original comedy series derived from The Big Bang Theory; an HBO Original “Game of Thrones” prequel A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight; a Max Original drama series based on The Conjuring films; Magnolia Network’s Fixer Upper: The Hotel; Discovery Channel’s Survive the Raft; Max Original Peter & the Wolf from Bono; Adult Swim’s Rick and Morty: The Anime; Investigation Discovery’s Lost Women of Highway 20; Cartoon Network’s Tiny Toons Looniversity; and TLC’s Love & Translation.
Max also provided first looks today at additional highly anticipated upcoming titles including Max Originals The Penguin starring Colin Farrell; HBO Original drama series The Sympathizer, an espionage thriller and cross-culture satire based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name; HBO Original limited series True Detective: Night Country starring Jodie Foster and Kali Reis; HBO Original limited series The Regime starring Academy Award-winner Kate Winslet; Max Original six-part docuseries SmartLess: On The Road, following Jason Bateman, Will Arnett, and Sean Hayes as they take viewers on an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the sold-out live tour of their podcast; and Max Original kids’ series Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai. In addition to Max original programming, a first look at HGTV’s four-part Barbie Dreamhouse Challenge hosted by Ashley Graham, which will also be available to stream on Max, was shown during the presentation.
Over the next week or so, HBOWatch will be looking closer at some of the titles mentioned above. As for now, our focus is still those shows that are branded an “HBO Original” whether it be a drama or a comedy special, documentary, etc. That is not to say that we will not cover some other titles on the streamer as we did with such “HBO Max Originals” as interest permits. We knew the day was coming; May 23 is the launch date. There is a lot of information to take in here. The content offered, the pricing tiers and frankly, your level of loyalty in following HBO wherever it goes. Will you be joining us over at Max?
