If the acquisition of Warner Bros and HBO Max is approved without conditions, HBO Max will be combined with Paramount's own streaming service, the company said.
Last week brought a surprising twist in the bidding war for Warner Bros Discovery. Despite having signed an agreement, Netflix withdrew by declining to match Paramount's higher offer.
Paramount will pay approximately $111 billion for Warner Bros Discovery and $2.8 billion to Netflix to exit the agreement. The deal is set to reshape the TV industry and naturally raises a host of questions.
What happens to HBO Max?
On Monday, Paramount announced that, pending regulatory approval, it plans to combine the streaming services.
More specifically, Paramount intends to merge Paramount+ and HBO Max. The company has not yet revealed how the combined service will be structured or what it will be called, but the ambition is clear: to become a stronger competitor to Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video.
- "As we said, we do plan to put the two services together, which today gives us a little over 200 million direct-to-consumer subscribers," said David Ellison, CEO of Paramount Skydance. "We think that really positions us to compete with the leaders in the space."
A merger would bring HBO content such as Game of Thrones and The Sopranos, Warner Bros franchises including Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Dune and Batman as well as Paramount franchises such as Mission: Impossible, Star Trek and Transformers under one roof.
In Europe, Paramount+ is part of SkyShowtime, a streaming service operated by Paramount in partnership with others. This will complicate the integration and the transition will take several years, said Paramount, with the acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery not expected to close before Q3 2026 at the earliest.
Paramount also operates Pluto TV.
Game of Thrones and Star Trek will come under the same roofHBO will remain HBO
Regardless of whether the combined streaming service ends up being called HBO Max, Paramount+ or something else, Paramount intends to preserve HBO as a distinct brand.
- "Our viewpoint is HBO should stay HBO. They built a phenomenal brand. They are a leader in the space, and we just want them to continue doing more of it. But by bringing the platforms together, all of our content will be able to reach even a broader audience than we can do standalone," said David Ellison.
HBO chief Casey Bloys' contract runs through 2027. He declined to comment on future plans.
- Source: Paramount via Variety
