HBO Max and Discovery Plus merge into one streaming platform

It's official, HBO Max and Discovery+ have come together on a single platform to give more content to their subscribers and give competition to other streaming services such as Netflix and Disney+ that includes sports and documentary channels.

During the 30th Annual Deutsche Bank Media, Internet and Telecommunications Conference, Gunnar Wiedenfels, Chief Financial Officer of Discovery, announced the news that he has already gone around the world.

“Discovery is preparing to combine the two transmitters (...) the company reveals its post-merger strategy for Discovery Plus and HBO Max,” Wiedenfels said, according to Variety magazine.

The merger of both platforms will be seen in the near future, as customers will be able to see a more extensive catalog of streaming options. And probably also an increase in the monthly payment.

“In the meantime we will start working on an interim solution. So right from the start we're working on preparing the bundling approach, maybe a single sign-on, maybe incorporating content into the other product, etc,” said the entrepreneur.

According to the spokesman for the company owned by Warner Media, “HBO Max, with a more premium male bias positioning, and then you have the female positioning on the Discovery side”, so with this addition they would be encompassing the tastes of the entire public.

On the other hand, HBO Max has been working on expanding its catalog through live sports broadcasting, as they are looking for the platform to offer all kinds of entertainment.

Although there is not yet a date for additions, they are expected to occur throughout 2022 and maximum by 2023. It is also not known whether the cost of the subscription will increase when the merger occurs and more content is added, although it is most likely that it will.

HBO ended the year with 73.8 million subscribers to its streaming service and its eponymous cable network, up from 69.4 million in September. This advance, along with the addition of nearly 900,000 paid monthly telephone subscribers.

The stakes of this perhaps decisive year in the return to normality are high. Disney announced $33,000 worth of content investments, or $8,000 more in an annual comparison, and much of that will go to Disney+ and ESPN+ and the Hulu deals. If that artistic and sports offer attracts the public so that Disney+ reaches 230-260 million subscribers by 2024, the venture would already make a profit then.

Successful series such as WandaVision and The Mandalorian follow film sagas and have been family-oriented. But Bob Chapek, CEO of Disney +, is convinced that the platform has “room to grow its subscriber base” with more general entertainment, in the style of Black-ish, without neglecting titles like Obi-Wan Kenobi, which will be released on May 25. “We are committed to our content, not only in terms of quantity, but also in terms of quality,” he added.

Finally, strategies are also flexible. Films like Encanto, whose huge impact on cinemas was less than expected, exceeded expectations on Disney+ (in addition to breaking records in the Billboard rankings with their soundtrack). “We don't think cinemas are the only way to build the Disney franchise,” said Chapek, indicating that successes on the platform could define the creative ideas of the future.

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