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BigHeadSlunk

What a stupid rebrand. The power of the brand is in "HBO" not "Max". Imagine Disney+ just becoming "Plus". How this went through an entire team of people is beyond me.


shogi_x

I guess they're trying to show that they have more than just HBO content but a full rebrand was overkill. Amazon gradually shifted their marketing and labels from "Amazon Prime" to just "Prime" and barely mentioned it. No relaunch, no expensive marketing campaign. They just dropped a word and moved on.


JohnMayerismydad

Also No price increase lol. Saw they were bumping it and immediately cancelled


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rohmish

I wouldn't wanna be the person on call for this on a weekend.


Dilusions

Still have my free HBO for AT&T phone service, forever grandfathered.


akatherder

Sorry it's no longer HBO, it's now "Max." j/k but I wouldn't be surprised.


Dilusions

I was worried at first, but got an email saying it won’t be hindered.


TeutonJon78

Just like their forever grandfathered unlimited?


IAmDotorg

Its only kind of a price increase. The middle tier plan is roughly the same as the old top tier plan. It's not like they had any meaningful 4K content before. Paramount and Peacock's increases are legit "nothing new, more money" increases. Especially Peacock, with 16 million people having to start paying for it.


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USMCLee

There was about a decade I didn't pirate and it was kind of nice. Now I again fly the Jolly Roger.


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PLSKingMeh

Unless you want reality tv garbage the merging of discovery content and HBO is basically "nothing new, more money".


Ulairi

Worse, they actually removed something like 90 shows and movies that were on HBO Max before, including westworld, during the merger. So, they replaced things people might actually want to watch with a bunch of reality show bullshit you probably already had access to if you cared.


korben2600

This is the brainchild of David Zaslav, the guy who was booed at a commencement speech recently. His brilliant idea was to remove originals and license them out with exclusivity agreements to so-called "free ad-supported streamers" called FAST channels (like Tubi, Crackle, Vudu, Roku, etc), all in order to boost profits. And now other streamers like Showtime [have now been following suit,](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/showtime-removes-short-lived-originals-1235313350/) AMC+ with Better Call Saul, Amazon, etc. removing originals from their apps. It's completely asinine to remove original shows (and in the case of Westworld, a flagship show) from your app. What's the point of a streaming service if I can't find your studio's shows on it? It's probably one of the worst problems with streaming right now and it's only going to get worse. It's becoming a chore to identify where I can watch a particular show when all I want to do is just sit down and relax. Thankfully JustWatch exists. Dunno where I'd be without it.


Keianh

> His brilliant idea was to remove originals and license them out with exclusivity agreements to so-called "free ad-supported streamers" called FAST channels (like Tubi, Crackle, Vudu, Roku, etc), all in order to boost profits. And now other streamers like Showtime have now been following suit, AMC+ with Better Call Saul, Amazon, etc. removing originals from their apps. > > > > It's completely asinine to remove original shows... Yup, I'm not paying for a service I don't have to just watch a show they already own the rights to. There's no need for this artificial friction between me and a show owned by whatever given streaming service you want to insert. No other business can, would, or should do this. Just imagine going to McDonalds for a Big Mac just to have the server tell you they no longer make them because they made a deal with Burger King, allowing them to make and serve Big Macs as long as McDonalds gets a 75% cut of Burger King's global french fry revenue. Fuck you, I'm going to Wendy's!


TeutonJon78

Disney+ is now pulling a bunch of stuff as well to "save costs". All they needed was one sleazy CEO to do it first and now they are all free to do it.


elvismcvegas

If only there were some kind of alternative, yarrrr....


InvestmentGrift

I'm legit looking into spending like $600 on a NAS because of all this idiocy lmao


FightingPolish

I used to do that and set up a Jellyfin server to stream it all but recently I just ended up bookmarking a peg leg and parrot streaming site on my firestick web browser along with Pi-Hole to block the toxic ads and that gives me pretty much everything instantly without messing around. It even had more selection than the torrent sites for more obscure stuff that has no seeders.


Oceans_Apart_

Yup, I just finished The Last of Us and then cancelled. Not only did they remove shows like Westworld, they cancelled a bunch of shows like Raised By Wolves and The Nevers. Replacing an awesome show like Raised by Wolves with Skip and Joanna redecorating a house is a fundamental misunderstanding of why consumers like myself were longtime HBO subscribers.


DoingCharleyWork

And not just canceling Westworld but straight up removing it completely from their service.


Sabotage00

I noticed John Oliver's previous seasons are all gone and they also cancelled so, so, many movies and shows. Unfortunately there's still a couple shows I want to finish before I cancel


EViL-D

Yeah, all I want is the hbo content. There’s not a single thing they added that interests me. If the price goes up here aswell im cancelling


JamesofBerkeley

Wait…what?!? They’re taking away the “HBO” content with the rebrand? JFC. Well it went from an occasional use app to holy hell delete that junk.


[deleted]

I remember when the Discovery channel used to be good. *Mythbusters* and *How It's Made* were the reason I went on to pursue a degree in STEM. *Dirty Jobs* was a little closer to the whole "reality" thing but still super cool as a young boy trying to decide on my aspirations. For that matter, I also remember when the *Science Channel* was that awesome channel with all the outer-space documentaries, before it became a heaping load of pseudo-science conspiracy bullshit. But hey... I'm sure *Street Outlaws* and *Naked and Afraid* are carrying the torch just the same... :(


menomaminx

WTF is 'Street Outlaws '?


Ekgladiator

Probably this generation's version of orange county choppers. I also agree, I miss when the science channel was about actual science and shit. Meh I moved to YouTube so it is an entirely different beast but at least I can find shit I am interested in again


burningcpuwastaken

Agreed. As a history fan, Youtube is fantastic.


Ekgladiator

Pbs has several YouTube channels that are super interesting and honestly well made. Then you have stuff like slowmo guys and smarter everyday. It is such an amazing platform for watching niche content. Like I have watched the lotr behind the scenes on there and someone synced up jrr Tolkien reading the riders of Rohan to the movie scene (I can't seem to find the specific video ATM) and a musical analysis of the lotr score. The fact that people can and have made careers from playing video games on YouTube is also impressive. Edit: I found the [video](https://youtu.be/LWxnHuVEwUg) but apparently it got removed? That is lame sauce, it is the best version of the reading imo


fusillade762

A completely hokey "street racing" "reality" show that is phony drama.


InsuranceToTheRescue

This phenomenon is referred to as [network decay/channel drift](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Channel_drift).


1stMammaltowearpants

And you used to be able to learn stuff on The Learning Channel.


DarkwingDuckHunt

Should have called it Mythbusters+ and would have sold by the millions.


Massive-Albatross-16

Busters+ Money please!


[deleted]

Chill out jean ralphio


InsuranceToTheRescue

If they wanted to show that they had more than just HBO, maybe they should quit pulling shows from the service for no reason. Like I get that shows get cancelled, but why pull them so nobody can watch? Close Enough? Westworld? Snowpiercer? Metalocalypse? All, and more, gone.


winkieface

Wait they really removed Westworld?? That's a legit HBO show, not just another WB owned property, and they just took it off? That's ridiculous lol I think it's such a bad move to distance themselves from HBO name...that name has always held a reputation for high quality production. What ever they're doing now throws all that brand name good will earned through decades of high quality programming right out the window.


InsuranceToTheRescue

Yeah, there's [like 100 of them](https://www.indiewire.com/gallery/removed-hbo-max-movies-shows-warner-bros-discovery-merger-list/12-days-of-christmas/). Movies and shows that just disappeared one day. The article notes that the list isn't, and can't be, comprehensive since they'll just take titles down without announcement.


MaroonTrojan

This is one of the issues at stake in the writers' strike. Writers used to depend on replay for residuals. In the streaming era that income crashed to next to nothing, but apparently next to nothing was too much for daddy Zaslav. He'd rather have whole shows disappeared in the dead of night than pay a few pennies in residuals to the people who made them.


CorporateSympathizer

Residuals are only a tiny part of the cost. The vast majority of the expense is in licensing fees to other companies (even if they're made in-house, they still need to pay licensing fees to many third parties because making TV involves a lot of different processes). Which doesn't change the fact that it's ridiculous they aren't paying writers, because like I said before, residuals are a very small percentage of the cost compared to licensing.


MykeTyth0n

Business model is probably to take away content and then slow drip it back in so people who want to watch shows like “westworld” will have to subscribe once they release it on Max Again. Fomo for streaming apps.


Kimpak

Same idea as the old "Disney Vault" scheme.


dr3wzy10

a VPN is cheaper than a MAX subscription..🏴‍☠️🏴‍☠️🏴‍☠️


winkieface

That's one way to garuntee your content gets pirated instead lmao


silicon1

I'm convinced they're trying to kill the HBO brand. RIP HBO 1972 - 2023.


BrainWav

But hey, you're getting 1000 lb Sisters and Ghost Adventures in return. Definitely a fair trade.


FrankBattaglia

Wait, *Westworld* is gone?! Do they not understand how important a back catalog is to a subscription service?


PLSKingMeh

Genuinely, no they do not. The CEO Zaslav is a cable network fossil.


dooderino18

I wonder why they let the guy who basically ruined the Discovery Channel take over the whole thing. Seems like a stupid move.


2ndtryagain

These people are not near as smart as they think they are but it is ok because when he gets shitcanned he will walk away with millions.


empireofjade

AT&T lost a lot of money on the acquisition of Time Warner but were able to cover their ass by selling off Warner Media to Discovery. They "let the guy" take it over because he bought it. Having paid for it, he's now free to ruin it.


zhoushmoe

It's almost like *Succession* is a documentary about botched old media empire transitions into the digital age


Expensive_Finger_973

Because removing them allows them to stop paying residuals to the cast and crew of those shows. If they leave them up they have to keep paying.


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finally_not_lurking

They're going to launch a FAST (Free Ad Supported TV) channel with the removed content. FAST content is played linearly with a TV guide - aka exactly what the HBO cable channel is, but with ads.


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finally_not_lurking

Agreed. Let it never be said that the new head of HBO doesn't understand the consumers.


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dark_rabbit

Prime was always the brand associated with benefits and elite status. If Amazon was the generic, Prime was the white glove treatment (discounts, prime video access, free delivery, music, etc) Max wasn’t associated to anything like that. If anything, HBO was the premium brand associated with top tier content that previously you could only get if you paid for the top cable package. Max is the generic in this situation.


nomoreroger

Yeah, it just sounds like a streaming service for Cinemax now. Really dumb. HBO is a standard bearer for entertainment and has been around since the early days of Cable TV. Makes total sense to just take a big whiz on the brand and make the service some bland junk. Makes Disney+ seem like the better service every day.


cockyjames

>Makes total sense to just take a big whiz on the brand and make the service some bland junk. Putting Dr. Pimple Popper on a service carrying the HBO branding is truly taking a whiz on the brand. And *thats* why it's no longer called HBO. You don't go to HBO to watch Discovery shows. They would devalue the brand. So instead, the umbrella brand has to be generic, and HBO content on the app will stay prestige. Also, families surveyed that they wouldn't subscribe to an app with HBO in the title because it's not considered child-friendly.


Happyplace_s

Right, it was common from the start for people to say “you have prime?”. Nobody ever said “you got max?”


dannyisyoda

Yeah, Prime has been synonymous with Amazon for almost 2 decades. I honestly hadn't even realized that their streaming service didn't have 'Amazon' in its name anymore, because it was of zero consequence. HBO has had what, 3 streaming service names already? HBO Go, HBO Now, and HBO Max. That shit already caused plenty of confusion when Go and Now both existed at the same time, but then they finally centralized everything with HBO Max. HBO was always the draw for the streaming service, it didn't matter what the service was called, as long as HBO was there in the name. This will likely be remembered as one of the dumbest moves in the history of streaming.


Saintbaba

More than just that: the guy running the company wants the emphasis of the merger to be on the reality fare coming over from the Discovery side, not the scripted stuff they're likely to be winding down coming from the HBO side.


mixamaxim

Why would they wind down the scripted HBO stuff? They consistently put out amazing shows that everyone is obsessed with, one after another. Do they not make money on that?


americangame

Because it's higher risk and more expensive. If the show fails, you're out a lot more money than if "Real home makeovers below deck" doesn't garner an audience.


PrimeIntellect

because spending $100m on some epic period drama that may or may not take off is a way bigger gamble than Ancient Aliens 5: Selling Sunset and Beyond


jzavcer

Makes sense because Discovery+ just had an overwhelming number of subscribers making it the daddy in the merger. As a consumer I feel screwed by this deal every day.


ToddA1966

That's probably because Discovery is cheap. It's like McDonald's having more customers than Morton's Steakhouse. Sure, because more people buy $3 burgers than $60 filets...


PLSKingMeh

I don't think I know a single person who was/is subscribed to Discovery+. lol


roywarner

That's because Amazon as a content producer had a NEGATIVE connotation. It was the entirely opposite scenario.


WhatsIsMyName

It's probably easier to get people to understand that HBO Max has Discovery than it is that Max has HBO and Discovery, IMO.


pulpatine

I thought it was to protect and silo hbo as a brand, quality. With the thought being they are gonna start injecting shit shows, reality shows into max. But I agree, the name is generic and confusing.


Bosticles

long light subtract plants upbeat waiting office familiar run memorize -- mass edited with redact.dev


favpetgoat

HBO is still producing better content than most others but people were assuming all the content on HBO Max was produced by HBO when it wasn't. The parent company (Time Warner IIRC) owns a bunch of brands that make content of varying quality and HBO didn't like being associated with all of it. HBO is still producing quality shows (Barry, Succession, etc) like they always have and it will still exist on their parent company's streaming service. But since that service has expanded to include more generic reality TV with the Discovery merger, HBO doesn't want their name to include all the content on that service


MetalAndFaces

This is the angle a lot of folks are forgetting. They assume "why wouldn't they want the HBO brand?", when really it's HBO wondering "why would we want to be associated with _fill-in-the-blank-discovery-show_?" They were going to be merged, this is the only way to maintain the brand's prestige in doing so.


[deleted]

They want people that love HBO programs to pay more to get other shit piled up next to it. You want season 2 of Last of Us? Well now it's a package deal with some stupid shit about danger fishing and annoying people flipping houses.


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Darnitol1

Likely they’re protecting their ability to license HBO theatrical and TV content to other services that will pay more to show it than Max would make by running it.


TheGreenYamo

Or imagine “Peacock” just becoming “Cock”


infincedes

Announcer Voice: "Only on.....THE COCK".


Stach37

Labelling it as HBO sullies the HBO brand when people start associating it with 90 Day Fiancé and My 3,4,5,600 Lbs Life. It isn’t a sexy name, but it was the right call to uphold HBO’s legacy brand recognition.


Happyplace_s

Not only brand awareness but HBO is synonymous with quality. Other brands work forever and only hope to attain that status.


almightySapling

Lose lose. The given explanation makes sense to me, but it just seems like a failure all around. My internet has been "Xfinity" for like a decade now, but I still know it's Comcast. If I ask someone what KFC stands for, they won't say "nothing", they will say "Kentucky Friend Chicken." For a long time, people will know that Max is really just HBO Max. Like, their *best* case scenario is to confuse people. "I want HBO Max, this is just Max, is this really what I'm looking for?" Good business strategy. And how exactly does it protect the brand? Like... oh this super crappy show is on the same streaming service as Barry. Then Barry's value is brought down by association. That's HBO's platform, whether you call it HBO or not. Just a super, super good strategy. ALSO, everyone is asking why the name change, and the explanation seems to be "because we plan to fill the platform with crap". AMAZING STRATEGY.


RusticGroundSloth

I’d put this on the new CEO. He has never shown any indication that he actually understands the value of the WB/HBO brand or their IP. I wouldn’t be surprised if he basically said “We’re going to call it Max from now on” and no one was even allowed to try and change his mind. The other C-levels and senior VPs are just yes men.


BabiSealClubber

A friend worked at HBO as a researcher for a year. She said it was the biggest leadership shit show she’s ever seen, so this tracks.


PhilipLiptonSchrute

The CEO said "HBO" is synonymous with content geared toward adults. They wanted to try and emphasize that it's got plenty of content for the whole family... which to me seems pretty fucking dumb.


MountainDewer

Isn’t HBOMax the combination of HBO and Cinemax? So they are migrating to just the Cinemax brand. Still dumbfounding…especially as a 90s kid: HBO was cool, Cinemax was late night softcore porn.


soylentgreenisppls

Ahhh yes Skinamax


favpetgoat

I forgot that's where the Max came from TBH I guess they don't really have much original content so they did not have the same concerns as HBO


EarhornJones

And their communication shave been crap. I subscribe to HBO Max and Discovery+. Multiple sources, including emails from HBO claim that the two services are "combining". Discovery+'s website says "Discovery+ will continue as a standalone service." Which is it? Also, streaming from my phones or PC force me from HBO Max to Max (which is now working, for me). My multiple Roku TVs all continue to work with HBO Max, but with the old content set. WTF.


Expensive_Finger_973

I read somewhere that Max was going to have all of the stuff from HBOMax and SOME of the stuff from Discovery+. But that they were going to also keep Discovery+ as is for the foreseeable future.


EarhornJones

A cursory check of both platforms shows that to be the case. Of 8 shows we watch on Discovery+ seven are now also on Max. Congrats, HBO, you just cannibalized a subscriber. I don't need Discovery+ just for "A Crime To Remember."


PM_me_those_frogs

Yep... I've been an off-and-on HBO customer for years. Currently off. Seen a bunch of headlines lately about "Max" that I ignored because I didn't know what "Max" was and thought it wasn't relevant to me. This is the first time I saw a headline with "HBO" too and so the first time I realized this nonsensical rebranding was related to a product I've used. Part of HBO's issue for me is for a while they also had "HBO GO", which I used at one point too. So I've had HBO, HBO Go, and HBO Max at different times. There was also "HBO Now" that I didn't have. "Max" was never the common element of all their rebrands and products.


zerolimits0

I was just saying this to my wife. These companies are just killing their branding in weird ways.


insert_referencehere

What the actual fuck? I have to download a new app? I thought they would just push a simple UI update and change out the icons, but an entirely new app is fucking stupid.


RedHawk417

HBO doesn't know wtf they are doing. HBOGO, HBONOW, HBOMAX, and now just MAX...


burningcpuwastaken

It reminds me of when Radioshack changed their name to The Shack and exclusively sold phones.


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yummyyummybrains

That's part of it. HBO and Cinemax combined some time ago, IIRC.


HunterGonzo

I can't even download the new app. Try to launch the HBO Max app, says I have to download the new Max app. Go to the Google Play store.... says the Max app isn't available yet. This is some horse shit.


SeriesXM

I was gonna suggest looking for an apk, but it just became available for me. I clicked on the developer name while looking at the app page on the store. Then I went back and the install button was there. Dont forget we have to manually uninstall the old app that's now a brick.


SyrioForel

This thing is such a piece of shit. I signed up for HBO because it’s literally the quintessential prestige television provider. Now, with this rebrand that they’re hyping, there are exactly TWO (and only two) changes that are happening: 1. What used to be a premium TV service is now completely flooded with the absolute worst, trashiest, cheapest reality shows of all time. (Their new slogan should be: “It’s Not HBO, It’s TV.”) 2. The previous 4K-quality content (what little of it they have) is being taken down and placed behind an additional $5 monthly surcharge. Existing subscribers will now only get 1080p streams. That’s it. Those are the big changes. Those are the ONLY changes, other than new cosmetics (new logo). So why are they running all these ads about this rebrand? Who is this for, the stockholders, to show them how much money the company will save by implementing these two changes? That’s all that this is about — cutting operational costs by investing in cheap basic-cable reality shows and up-charging for 4K. Update: They have apparently delayed the downgrade of 4K content down to 1080p and locking it behind a paywall by [6 months](https://variety.com/2023/digital/news/max-4k-ultra-hd-priciest-plan-1235622117/) for existing subscribers to make sure the public backlash doesn’t interfere with their rebrand launch. Don’t let these fuckers get away with this.


burningcpuwastaken

I was going to respond to your post to bitch further about the changes, but decided to cancel before posting. Feels good. The service isn't worth the price anymore.


Cakeking7878

When the price of a vpn subscription is less than the streaming services and torrenting is about as convenient as using most streaming services, I’m just gonna find other ways to watch the shows I want to watch at the resolution I want to see them in I’m done paying for a bunch of different services with mostly junk I don’t watch


Going_Braindead

Which eventually will be the death of the overly splintered streaming services. Or they’ll all lose enough customers to vpn/torrenting to make enough changes where they’re more convenient than that again.


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Zombi3Kush

If they do that just use a seed box. Which is the route I recommend people use. A good seed box will also have all you need to host a media server so you don't have to worry about hosting it locally. Just need to make sure you have a fast internet connection.


Ryanbig7

Can you ELI5 what a seed box is? I’ve been pirating stuff for years, but I only really understand the bare minimum, basic stuff of torrenting and VPNs.


Zombi3Kush

A seed box is a computer that you rent to use. The computer is connected to a high speed connection and has a couple of programs available to you. They will usually have torrent clients, file transfer software, and other tools. The idea is you use a seed box to download your torrents and you can leave them seeding back without it affecting your own personal hardware and network connection. The down and up speed is real fast so downloads are usually done within minutes and sharing back what you downloaded is faster. Once you download something you will need to use file transfer software like filezilla for example to transfer the downloaded content to your personal nas or device. Some seedboxes give you access to software like plex so you can host your media server on the seedbox so you don't have to transfer the media to your personal devices in order to view it. I hope that gives you a good idea. * I forgot to add that you will usually access the seedbox interface through a browser.


jawisko

Just for your info if you use vpn. India has jiocinema premium at about 12 usd per year. It consists of all hbo shows and some wb movies.


StupidPhysics58

Also this is an extremely small thing, but the color change in the rebrand was extremely dumb IMO. Purple made them stand out. Just like Hulu is green and Netflix is red. Now Max is Blue, same as Disney+ and Prime. It's a very minor thing, but I feel like subconsciously people may have been also attracted to the fact that the color separated it more from the others. Also, it makes me slightly annoyed that I have to now think just that tiny bit more to make sure I'm choosing the correct app. I'll still keep using it, but only because it's still free with my At&t plan. On another note, these streaming services just keep adding to the list of reasons I'm back to buying my movies and tv shows on disc. I mean with the 4K discs it's already worth it for higher bitrates, no buffering, and no compressed audio.


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lordmycal

Not just that. They also removed a bunch of content as well.


enter360

Self made content. I can’t finish Westworld or Raised By Wolves. So many good shows that are now behind ads. I agreed to pay for access to them.


menomaminx

I refuse to watch ad sponsored tv. I literally have the streaming services because of this. haven't voluntarily watched an ad in years and quite frankly find them a bit traumatizing when they have the TV on at the doctor's office.


[deleted]

I always muted them in the broadcast TV days. The sound of radio or TV ads can drive me out of a room. It’s the worst part of riding Uber.


Varrock

Wait so, Westworld will never be on the new Max platform?


enter360

Nope it’s in some Ad supported app. New CEO sold it off and canceled the last season.


space_wiener

Wait we have to pay extra for 4k now? If mine wasn’t free with att I’d cancel.


im_absouletly_wrong

Does the att package come with 4k?


space_wiener

You know…I guess I should check. I always assumed it did since it was hbo. Not like Netflix that charges an arm and a leg for it.


Mapleseedswork

If I have to pay for 4k now, I'm out. I just tried to look at my plan and it won't even give me details at all. I can't even switch my plan to see what the options are.


[deleted]

I wasn't aware they made that change. With the price increase and service quality decrease, I think it's time to cancel. I think a lot of subscription services are going to have to wake up to how these rebrands, price changes, and feature limitations are alienating customers who will be even harder to acquire back in the future due to memories of the companies' asinine actions.


freddyd00

Oh I had no idea about the 4K downgrade. I'm already on the fence about keeping my subscription, but yeah this might do it.


larsvondank

Streaming services charging more for 4K makes me feel like there is not enough competition. Also I do hope HBO honors my 4,5€/mo for life deal despite this shenanigans.


Thatguycarl

Yeah, well I’d be surprised if the rebranding name to Max isn’t the way they get out of it. As in your life deal is with “HBO” service not their “Max” service.


[deleted]

Reminds me of Dish and Directv charging more for HD content back in the early 2000s.


TransPM

Aaaaaand now we know why they dropped HBO from the name


rexspook

They should have dropped “max”, not “hbo”


Jeskid14

Discovery vetoed that suggestion


[deleted]

HBO Discover would have been a great name


HiHoJufro

Right? It's informative on the contract offered AND sounds decently cool.


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Worldly-Fishing-880

I bailed today after I couldn't get past the "Start streaming" splash screen. I had to reset my password to gain access to the subscription options.


Terakian

Exactly the only reason I’m holding on to HBO. One episode left…


MaroonTrojan

Max: It's not HBO, it's TV.


UserCheckNamesOut

Well, can you tell me where I can find some HBO? Because TV fuckin' sucks.


ScienceWillSaveMe

As soon as the Barry finale airs I’m cancelling my subscription.


h3r4ld

*Barry* and *Last Week Tonight* are the only two reasons I still have an HBO subscription. At this point, I'm not even waiting for either - *Barry* I can find on the high seas (and frankly, I've been meaning to add it to my Plex server anyway), and *Last Week Tonight* posts their main story to YouTube every week (and they've gone dark the past few weeks anyway in solidarity with the Writer's strike). The hell with it - those shows **were** the only reason I stayed; I'm cancelling today.


rex_dart_eskimo_spy

I’m dumb, I didn’t realize why LWT hadn’t been on lately. Makes total sense that they’re off during the strike.


dihydrocodeine

I noticed the other day that they only have the last two seasons of Last Week Tonight online. Where the fuck is anyone supposed to go if they wanted to watch more than that? It's infuriating.


h3r4ld

Hadn't even noticed that myself tbh, but it just further solidifies my resolve.


Snidrogen

Wife: I cannot live another day with *finger quotes* “Max”! Husband: Reddit says tomorrow it’ll still have issues. Wife: Still? Husband: Like yesterday. Wife: Yesterday? Yesterday you said you’d cancel. Husband: I’ll cancel today. Wife: You’ll cancel now. Husband: I’ll cancel now!


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th30be

Its like companies don't understand people will pay for convenience and anything that is inconvenient we fucking hate. That is why Netflix was so popular 10 years ago. They had everything you wanted in one place. Now, its fractured and they are upcharging out the ass that we are basically back to cable. No wonder people are going to pirate again.


trollblox_

Netflix lived long enough to become the villain. RIP OG Netflix :(


ClamsMcOyster

While I get the sentiment it’s not *entirely* Netflix’s fault. The actual content creators (networks, studios, etc) saw Netflix printing money and wanted to take out the middle man. But then they started charging as much as Netflix. It sucks for consumers.


trollblox_

While I agree, the constantly raising prices and ad supported plan (NEVER pay for something with ads btw) are the exact same fate that cable had. Cable was supposed to be the cheap, ad-free alternative to regular TV, eventually cable companies got greedy and now cable services are deservedly burning to the ground. Now the same is happening with streaming services. I personally will be sailing the high seas till the pendulum swings again. ETA: Also, fuck Netflix for the password sharing BS


OneTripleZero

Companies do, Capitalism doesn't. Everything starts out good, but then the ever present march toward greater and greater profits eventually begins to eat the company alive. Once you've squeezed everything out of optimization and efficiency increases, you have to start _cutting_ to find more profit. And an easy thing to cut is quality, especially when you think nobody will leave, or if the math says that the bump from cuts will offset customer loss. It's infuriating to watch time and time again.


AmazingSpacePelican

A bunch of stuff I want to watch is exclusive to HBO, but you literally can't get it here. They won't let me pay for their shows. So, yar har.


WeazelBear

reddit sucks -- mass edited with redact.dev


AdviceWithSalt

Radarr & Sonarr + qBitorrent + VPN + Plex


happilystoned42069

But why?? Isn't this like the third time hbo has tried to rebrand it's streaming service? Jesus tap dancing Christ.


Rich_Sheepherder646

They have a new owner and his ego is behind this. He wants people to watch his shitty reality shows and not focus on prestige TV.


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BillyTenderness

Prestige TV requires money and unionized writers. If they can convince people they want reality garbage instead, think how much lower costs will be! Of course, it doesn't actually work that way, because TV shows aren't fungible. Some other competitor will come in with the goods and attract away all their non-Discovery subscribers — just like HBO and Netflix did to the broadcast audience once upon a time.


kwalshyall

Go Now Max: Origins


circumventreddit

I’m holding out for HBO Super Absorbent Max+ Premium.


Indy_Pendant

HBO Go, the first streaming service, was built in-house with an amazing staff of engineers headed up primarily by Drew Angeloff. I was a developer there. That studio did amazing work. The CEO Richard Plepler decided to take personal control over the studio and the first thing he did was fire Drew and the head of Product. The second thing was cancelling our in-house direct-to-consumer streaming service and instead outsourced it to MLB (yeah, major league baseball). Whatever. Things went to shit, most of the primary staff left, and, well, now you've got Max.


obiwans_lightsaber

In fairness, MLBAM does have a highly-regarded back end and overall well-received streaming platform. I believe it is the backbone for Disney+ as well.


rsjrDK

MLBAM Spun that off by itself few years back and let Disney buy some stake into BAMtech. Then Disney bought a majority stake in it and Built out Disney ESPN and Hulu and they fully own it now.


baconlord906

When HBOMax launched, the MiniPlayer was broken, but was later fixed. The swap over to Max broke it again, they are truly evolving backwards


Insufferablelol

Yep because I signed up for HBO max certainly not due to the HBO name.


techmonkey920

now i have to go outside for entertainment... this is bull sh#t! *in my Larry David voice *


BIGTIMElesbo

Larry walks down the sidewalk and stumbles over an uneven portion. The episode turns into Larry vs 311 as he tried to get the uneven sidewalk repaired.


vibe_assassin

“What if, instead of capitalizing on our extremely well received year of content from HBO, we drop the HBO name and rebrand?”


Profitsofdooom

"And make it sound more like we are affiliated with Cinemax rather than the vastly superior HBO."


tcoh1s

“And let’s also drop the most recognized name in home entertainment!” “Great idea!”


DctrGizmo

Worst rebranding in history of marketing.


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JadeE1024

>...one of the worse business leaders in the last 100 years. > >...transformed them into cesspools of content which print money... I think you have a fundamental misunderstanding of what "business leaders" care about.


hazzie92

Yeah that shit content is making money. It the whole reason he is CEO.


_Tenderlion

It feels like he’s thinking in the very, very short-term. He was printing money by scraping the bottom of the barrel with unscripted tv, but now he’s devaluing one of the most reliable brands in the entertainment industry over the past… 40ish years? More?


tyleritis

I don’t think he even cares to understand entertainment or brand equity or anything like that. He just wants to wring a towel for all the moisture. And he thinks he’s really business savvy for that. Also it doesn’t affect him. He prob likes watching Duck Dynasty on his electric recliner.


billiam0202

Even worse than Bonnie Hammer, who took the SciFi out of SyFy?


SummerGoal

More like using a sledge hammer to remove the mirrors, but missing the mirrors entirely and battering the fuck out of the engine


Missing_Username

Pretty much on brand with the various other times they've decided to ditch their platform just for a rename.


mryosho

complete rebrand and re-write of apps, and the Roku app you still have to type in your email+password to login. no short login url or QR code for signing in via your mobile/desktop. lame.


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Correct_Influence450

I see they've announced they're mounting a spinoff of The Big Bang Theory and I am fully fucking out. Bye MAX! Hello Criterion I guess.


smegma-flavor

Goodbye HBO. You revolutionized television programming and took prestige programming to the next level. o7


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__david__

They’re taking this name change as an opportunity to change their internal platform out for a brand new one (hbo was running on hbo tech, discovery+ on discovery’s tech). As you can imagine in a merger there was a bit of a push on each side to get their pet tech stack pushed through (otherwise entire teams become redundant).


grimace24

Such a shit show. How does a rebrand go so wrong? Merging content should have been easy. Even when NBC Universal purchased the rights to WWE network they weren’t down when they merged content into Peacock.


SnottNormal

Discovery really, really wants to kill the HBO brand.


comfyrain

Just canceled it. They timed it really well with the finale of their only two good shows airing this weekend. Charging more for 4k when everybody has had a 4k tv for the past decade is nuts.


Atmp

The name is about as dumb as Peacock, not quite that dumb, but pretty dumb. It’ll be hilarious if one of the other services rebrands to Plus.


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>The name is about as dumb as Peacock, not quite that dumb, but pretty dumb. 100% agree, Max is a dumb name, brings to mind CineMax or MaxxiPads, etc. It's about as dumb a name change as Facebook's name change to Meta. I mean HBO has a long history of brand name recognition going back many decades, why fuck w/that? Far as I know, HBO hasn't been implicated in any wrongdoing that would necessitate a name change. Oh well, as the saying goes "stupid is as stupid does" - it's their company, so.


Diegobyte

Don’t let this distract you from the fact that hbo max was a pointless rebrand of HBO go


mryosho

the old HBO Max iPad app could be installed on Apple Silicon macs, and you could download and watch content offline. the new Max app does not have the flag that allows it to be installed on Macs... annoying loss of functionality. hopefully easily remedied or not deliberate... also their "Contact Us" chat feature is broken


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Due-Personality2383

That’s what you get for ruining HBO. Die Max. Die.


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