HBO Max and Discovery+ already have a favorite name for their joint streaming platform: simply Max

As we already knew, one of the main movements that will result from the merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery is also the merging of each of the companies’ streaming platforms, HBO Max and Discovery+. Warner Bros. Discovery’s idea is to launch it next year, and we already have new details on what that will look like.

According to CNBC, the company executive, led by David Zaslav, already has a preferred name to call the new platform: Maximus, only Maximus. In addition to ending the hegemony of “Plus” in the field of streaming, it would also serve to end the “branding” mess that HBO Max has resulted in countries where HBO existed as a cable channel.

When WarnerMedia decided to launch its platform as HBO Max, the brand split in two. On the one hand we had HBO series, such as ‘Succession’, which tried to maintain the aura of prestige that the chain has carved out in its 50-year history. On the other hand, Max Originals were born, such as ‘The Flight Attendant’, series and films released directly in streaming, with a slightly more casual look. Since both are included in the same platform, the only thing they have achieved is that the HBO brand has lost value, and this is something that has greatly worried the new board of directors.. Zaslav, in an effort to continue cutting costs, was quick to cancel Max Originals projects because that was not the brand he wanted to preserve. Making HBO its own brand again within the rest of the company’s labels (Discovery, Warner Bros., DC, Adult Swim…) would make things easier for the user.

With the streaming “crisis” underway, in which the big names are starting to see how the number of subscribers is stagnating, or even decreasing, companies like Warner have decided to change their strategy and reduce direct spending on streaming so that platforms can profit from users’ money as soon as possible. Most likely, therefore, there will be less content created for streaming and more content that will be exploited by each brand in its field (HBO in cable broadcasts, Warner in theaters) and which will then swell the platform’s catalogue.

More like Disney+

Of the little that is known about Max, who should be remembered as one of the names under consideration, is that they intend to launch it in the spring of next year. According to CNBC, the new platform would be very similar to Disney+, highlighting each brand with its own section. They will also take advantage of it “address some of the shortcomings of the current platform”, without specifying what these negative points are. There is no chosen price yet, but it is very likely that it represents an increase compared to the 8.99 euros per month that HBO Max currently costs in Spain. Maximum content, maximum money.