HBO Max: Launch date, prices, shows and movies to expect

HBO max, the HBO-anchored streaming service finally announced Start May 27th, has a lot in common with its competitors in the streaming wars like Disney Plus and peacock, not to mention it Netflix. Like these, HBO max will contain an extensive catalog of hit shows and films as well as a large selection of exclusive originals full of stars.

One of the main differences: HBO Max is the most expensive.

HBO Max from AT & T’s WarnerMediainvests billions of dollars in the service, its original programming budgets, and the expensive deals to stream popular reruns like Friends and The Big Bang Theory.

When HBO Max announced its official launch date last week, it also released a new teaser video for the service with the first (very brief) insights into the originals that are streamed exclusively on the service. A section showed the actress Anna Kendrick in Love Life, one Anthology series Produced by Kendrick and Paul Feig, who in each episode follow one character per season through a new romantic relationship. Another seemed to come from The Flight Attendant, a drama series in which a flight attendant wakes up with a dead person in a hotel room.

At the start, the service will stream six so-called Max Originals, including Love Life; the documentary On the Record, which is probably best known for being controversial enough Oprah Winfrey and Apple withdrew;; an underground ballroom dance competition series called Legendary; Craftopia, hosted by YouTuber LaurDIY; new Looney Tunes cartoons; and Sesame Workshops The Not Too Late Show with Elmo. (The flight attendant is coming later this year, HBO Max said. For more information, see the Shows and Movies section below.)

All along the line WarnerMedia’s gigantic deal with director and producer J.J. Abrams will produce at least three series for HBO Max: a Show in the Dark Universe of the Justice League;; Overlook, a thriller based on Stephen King’s The Shining and set in the Overlook Hotel; and a 1970s crime series called Duster. And WarnerMedia also has big franchises and brands to offer: the DC universe and game of Thrones certain. HBO Max even does a blank Friends goodbye special with the original cast.

But the Max Originals plan was undoubtedly followed by the Corona virus Pandemic.

People across the country are confined to their homes and stream a lot more, but the virus and its respiratory diseases, COVID-19have stopped television productions worldwide. New services launched this year are particularly affected as they have not yet completed as many original programs. Peacock has announced that most of its original productions will be put on hold and only a handful of originals will be available for launch nationwide in July.

HBO Max hasn’t said much about the effects of the virus yet, but it’s safe to say he’s in the same boat. The special for reunion with friends, for example? It is delayed. (Although the Friends stars raffle tickets to record as soon as it is finally safe to shoot again.)

HBO Max will cost $ 15 a month when launched in the U.S. on May 27. Compared to $ 7 a month for Disney Plus, Peacock offers a free, limited tier of advertising. Some people who already have an HBO subscription will receive Max included free of charge – who already pays for HBO by AT & T. (Parent company of HBO), the AT&T satellite service DirecTV or Charter and its spectrum services. Apple and YouTube TV will offer HBO Max directly through their platforms, but it is unclear whether this means any kind of special offer.

But not every HBO customer receives the automatic upgrade.

Last week AT&T released a complex breakdown of all of its products HBO Max Promos. As planned, some get it at no additional cost, while others qualify for a one-month, three-month, or one-year full trial. (It is confusing.)

And for everyone, at some point in the first year of service, HBO Max will add a level of advertising that is cheaper or possibly even free. However, the company has not given any precise information.

HBO Max will be the last participant to arrive in the streaming war period of about six months when technology and entertainment giants start their own streaming video subscriptions to compete against Netflix. With more than 167 million subscribers worldwide, Netflix has dominated the transition to streaming TV.

What does HBO Max cost?

HBO Max starts at $ 15 a month.

Within the first year, the service will be expanded by a further level with advertising. The company didn’t specify the price, start date, or catalog restrictions for this level, but it would probably be cheaper or free.

HBO’s current standalone streaming service, HBO Now, also costs $ 15 a month. Although HBO Now will continue to operate, HBO Max will essentially replace it. HBO Now subscribers are welcome to use this service, but essentially pay the same amount for less content. HBO Max will have the same shows and films on HBO Now, as well as a large catalog of licensed programs and exclusive originals.

Compared to competing streaming services launched before HBO Max, this pricing can feel steep for many consumers. Disney Plus costs $ 7 a month Apple TV Plus is $ 5. Both offer offers with which the price can be reduced further or offer options for longer free periods of up to one year. Apple, for example, awards an annual subscription to anyone who has bought an Apple device since early September. And Disney has signed a contract with Verizon to give each cellphone subscriber to the cellphone provider a year for free.

Where can I get HBO Max? And how do I get Max if I already have HBO?

The easiest way to get HBO Max is to register directly with hbomax.com. HBO Max is also offered through Apple: you can sign up for the HBO Max through an in-app purchase in the service’s iOS app, and Apple will also integrate HBO Max into its own TV app that you can use to gather certain streaming channels to watch them in one place. YouTubeTV, the streaming pay TV service operated by YouTube, will also support HBO Max.

But it gets more complicated if you already have HBO. Some people who already have a subscription to HBO can unlock HBO Max at no additional cost. but not every.

HBO Now subscribers can upgrade to HBO Max for free, and HBO subscribers through AT&T can also get it for free (i.e. HBO customers via DirecTV, U-Vers, AT & T TV Now, AT & T TV and AT & T Wireless users who add certain features to HBO can add unlimited plans). A contract with Charter in April gives all existing Charter HBO subscribers, including those who subscribe to the Spectrum Silver and Gold video packages, automatic and free access to HBO Max.

However, it is unclear whether you can include HBO Max if you source your HBO through another pay TV provider, whether it is a traditional provider like Comcast or Dish Network, or an internet-based provider like Hulu, Amazon Prime Video Channels or Apple TV Channels and the Roku Channel. When AT&T announced HBO Max at a three-hour presentation in October, the company said it was still in discussions with other pay TV providers to offer HBO Max to its traditional HBO subscribers. Since then, only the charter partnership has emerged.

AT&T also offers a complex matrix of promos for HBO Max. Some customers get it at no additional cost, while others qualify for a one-month, three-month, or one-year full trial. The best way to find out whether you qualify is to check your account or the myAT & T app. However, CNET also lists AT & T’s qualification requirements HBO Max Promos.

When does HBO Max start?

HBO Max launches in the U.S. on May 27.

After that, the first international expansions of HBO Max will give priority to Latin America and Europe. Latin America will receive HBO Max in 2021, the company said.

HBO Max’s U.S. timing will bring it toward the end of the streaming services parade. After Disney Plus and Apple TV Plus both launched in November, April brought Quibi, a mobile streaming service from Hollywood giant Jeffrey Katzenberg that focuses on short episodic originals that can only be viewed on cell phones. Also in April, Peacock started a “sneak peek” at Comcast. Peacock’s national launch is scheduled for July 15 (though this date may be postponed).

Which devices can stream HBO Max?

According to the HBO, the Max service will be available on a “very wide range of devices” including phones, tablets, the Internet, connected TVs and game consoles.

The company has only recently started to specify precise device support.

On Monday, it was announced that HBO Max will have an app for most Apple devices that can stream videos – iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Apple TV 4K, and Apple TV HD. However, customers with second and third generation Apple TV models have to stream HBO Max content from their iPhone or iPad to their TV using AirPlay.

Shows and films: What can I see on HBO Max?

The HBO Max catalog is everywhere on the map.

HBO Max will include all shows and films on HBO, as well as a selection of high-quality licensed content such as Friends, The Big Bang Theory, Rick & Morty and South Park. And it will layer exclusive original programming Furthermore. At launch, HBO Max announced that 10,000 hours of content will be available for streaming.

HBO Max originally planned to have 31 originals in the first year and up to 50 originals in the second year. However, these schedules may need to be adjusted due to corona virus interference.

The easiest part of the catalog to understand is HBO itself. HBO Max will contain everything on regular HBO, that is, all the movies that come and go from the channel; new episodes from all HBO series like Westworld, last week tonight with John Oliver, Sesame Street and so on; and the past seasons of these programs as well as the full HBO back catalog like Game of Thrones, Silicon Valley, Veep, The Wire and so on. Plus all HBO original films, documentaries and specials.

Films will also be an important part of the catalog. Any film that can be viewed on the traditional HBO network can also be streamed on HBO Max. The highlights of the HBO Max film catalog include (but not necessarily available at the start):

• The complete sets of the trilogies The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings and The Matrix.
• The Lego films.
• DC films like Joker, Wonder Woman, Suicide Squad, Shazam, Aquaman and all Batman and Superman films of the past 40 years.
• Studio Ghibli Anime movies that have never been released for streaming in the U.S.
• Classic films like The Wizard of Oz, Casablanca, Citizen Kane, The Glow, Sing in the Rain, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Goonies and many others.
• Newer hits like Crazy Rich Asians and A Star Is Born.

Ultimately, HBO Max will have more than 18,000 films, the company said.

In addition, AT&T has licensed external hit shows to replenish the HBO Max catalog. The most striking were:

• A reported $ 425 million deal to win the rights to all episodes of the hit of the 90s Friendswho left Netflix to start streaming on HBO Max at launch.
• A reported $ 500 million streaming deal The big Bang Theory.

It has also secured past season offers from Rick and Morty; 11 of the last seasons of Doctor Who plus three more; CW dramas such as Pretty Little Liars, Batwoman and Riverdale spinoff Katy Keene as well as other upcoming CW series; The Prince of Bel-Air; and the west wing; among many others.

The animated satire South Park will not only contribute its full back catalog to HBO Max, but will also stream new episodes. South Park’s latest episodes will air on HBO Max 24 hours after Comedy Central airs for the next three seasons.

And HBO Max will have exclusive original shows and films called Max Originals. For the most part, original series will release new episodes weekly on HBO Max.

At the start on May 27, the originals will include:

• Love Life, the comedy with Kendrick
• On the Record, the controversial documentary
• Legendary, about underground ballroom dancing
• Craftopia, the craft series hosted by YouTuber
• New Looney Tunes cartoons
• The not too late show with Elmo

Over the course of summer and autumn, HBO Max will add more originals, including:

• The Flight Attendant, with and by Kaley Cuoco based on the novel by Chris Bohjalian
• The Friends unscripted Cast Reunion Special
• New original episodes of the DC property Doom Patrol
• A new season of the Mystery Comedy Search Party
• Expecting Amy, a three-part documentary about the life of comedian Amy Schumer on tour, who creates a standup special during her pregnancy
• Sci-Fi epic Raised by Wolves by director and executive producer Ridley Scott. The 10-episode series focuses on two androids raising human children on a mysterious planet. The show had already completed production in South Africa.
• The animated adult comedy Close Enough by J.G. Quintel looking at the surreal life of a millennial family with roommates
• Adventure Time: Distant Lands-BMO, the first of four specials to revive Cartoon Network’s Adventure Time franchise

HBO Max originally planned to have 31 original series in its starting year (in combination with HBO content a total of 69 series). Then in 2021, HBO Max planned to expand Max Originals to 50 shows. About half are aimed at young adults aged 16 to 34, and the rest are shared between more adults and children, and family content outside of the HBO brand.

Some of the other highlights of the originals set for HBO Max are:

• New DC titles. A secret Green Lantern The series, which says producer Greg Berlanti (a TV guru for young adults behind Riverdale and Arrow), will travel to space and “promises to be our biggest DC show ever made”. Weird adventure, a one-hour drama anthology series, also produced by Berlanti, that explores the overlapping lives of mortals and superhumans. DC Super Hero High will be a half-hour comedy by Elizabeth Banks, the producer and actress known for the Hunger Games films and 30 Rock, that focuses on a group of teenage boarding school students for “gifted” children.
• J.J. Abrams. Abrams, known for a parade of television and box office hits, signed one Megadeal with AT&T and WarnerMedia To make projects for the company. On HBO Max, he helps produce one Show in the Dark Universe of the Justice League;; Overlook, a thriller based on Stephen King’s The Shining and set in the Overlook Hotel; and a 1970s crime series called Duster.
• A half-hour comedy by actress producer Issa Rae. Raes Rap Sh * t Researches the music business in Miami through the eyes of three women: an aspiring hip-hop duo and their busy manager.
• A half-hour comedy by actress / producer Mindy Kaling. College girls (a working title) tracks three 18-year-old roommates at Evermore College in Vermont.
• The boondocks The animated series receives “two reinterpreted seasons” as well as a 50-minute special that was originally planned for autumn 2020.
• A new Jellystone animation series with the classic Hanna Barbera characters from Warner Bros. Animation.
• Cartoon Network Studios’ new cartoon series is called The fungies and Tig N’Seek, as well as a hybrid live action / animation comedy, Tooned Out, by Oscar winner Robert Zemeckis.
• Comedy specials from Conan O’Brien and the team behind his TBS show. You will develop five stand-up specials for HBO Max: O’Brien will host two specials that include short sets of several upcoming comics and curate sets of three comedians for hours. This panel will join another one-hour special by comedian James Veitch.

The service will have a smaller list of original films, between five and ten a year, according to the original plan. The first highlights on the original film include:

• A two-picture deal with Reese Witherspoons Hello Sunshine.
• A documentary about Anthony Bourdain.
• A four-picture deal with Berlanti, including Unpregnant, about two teenage girls who are taking a road trip to New Mexico after finding out she is pregnant, based on the young adult novel by Jenni Hendriks and Ted Caplan.
• Super Intelligence, a comedy starring Melissa McCarthy about a woman whose romantic life has been selected for observation by artificial intelligence.
• Bobbie Sue, a comedy film starring Gina Rodriguez by Jane the Virgin as an aspiring young lawyer who joins a stuffy law firm in Boston.

CNET has a list of All shows and films for HBO Max so far.

How does HBO Max fit with HBO Go and HBO Now?

HBO Max will be similar HBO Go and HBO Now but with additional programming.

Generally speaking HBO now and HBO Go are almost the same product. The main difference is who uses it: anyone can sign up for HBO Now for $ 15 a month, while HBO Go is the app for people who already have an HBO subscription through a live TV provider like cable or satellite. Both HBO Now and HBO Go stream all of the programs available on WarnerMedia’s traditional HBO network.

People who already have HBO Now can switch to HBO Max at no additional cost. For HBO Go users it is more complicated. HBO Go is unlocked through a Pay TV subscription, and HBO Max isn’t unlocked for all Pay TV customers. Currently, only people who pay for HBO through an AT&T, DirecTV or charter service can add HBO Max to their current subscription. (For more information, see our “How much does HBO Max cost?” Section.) If WarnerMedia is unable to complete any other offers, anyone else currently paying for HBO will have to pay an additional $ 15 a month if they want HBO Max.

How does HBO Max differ from all other AT&T streaming services?

Yes, AT&T has even more streaming services.

AT&T TV is similar to a cable or satellite pay TV service, but is provided over the Internet. AT&T TV Includes live channels, DVR and video-on-demand that subscribers are familiar with, and the ability to stream from apps like Netflix and Pandora. In order to be able to watch TV on television, AT & T TV has its own streaming box, which AT & T must use. Subscribers can also see everything on mobile devices with one app. At the moment it starts at $ 50 a month for the first year of the cheapest tier. The price jumps to $ 93 a month in the second year.

AT&T TV nowon the other hand is a Live TV streaming service modeled on Sling TV or YouTube TV. If you were familiar with DirecTV Now, AT&T TV now is just the renamed version of this service. Instead of requiring a specific box, subscribers can stream live channels to Rokus, Apple TVs, Fire TVs, and more. The channels are also available in a mobile app. It also has a cloud DVR. Services like this are sometimes referred to as skinny bundle streaming services, but AT & T TV Now’s cheapest package isn’t that thin – $ 55 a month for more than 45 live channels (excluding HBO). Nevertheless, it is not quite as robust as AT & T TV, which is supposed to replicate the huge cable packages of traditional television.

After all, AT&T Watch TV is closer to a traditional skinny bundle. It offers more than 35 live channels, including TBS, TNT and CNN from AT&T. AT&T Watch TV is a free perk that is included in certain unlimited AT&T wireless data plans. Anyone can sign up for $ 15 a month. It was developed as a mobile-first service, but you can stream AT&T Watch TV to TVs with some boxes, including Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV, but others are not supported, such as: B. Roku boxes.

Easy, right?