AT&T has set a May 2020 launch date for its upcoming streaming service, HBO Max and will price the service at $14.99 a month, on par with the HBO premium cable channel.
The wireless company also said that it will offer the service free for one year to those who already subscribe to an AT&T TV service. This includes AT&T TV, the upcoming streaming version of AT&T’s premium pay TV service.
“General entertainment streaming is the next great opportunity to aggregate and grow audience,” John Stankey, AT&T’s COO and WarnerMedia’s CEO, said at the company’s media event Tuesday on the Warner Bros.’ lot in Burbank, California. (The event was covered by Variety, Deadline Hollywood and The Hollywood Reporter, among other publications.)
Related: AT&T Says HBO Max Will Reach 50M Subscribers by 2024
AT&T revealed that an ad-supported version of HBO Max will debut in 2021 and also be bundled with AT&T TV. That same year, AT&T will debut live-streamed news and sports on the platform.
AT&T officials said they expect to have around 75 million to 90 million HBO Max subscribers by 2025, and around 50 million in the U.S. alone at that time.
At launch, AT&T—which has been steadily announcing content deals in recent months for HBO Max—said the platform will launch with around 10,000 hours of programming.
At its event Tuesday afternoon, HBO Max announced several more programming deals. These include:
- Exclusive streaming rights to South Park.
- Streaming rights to the first three seasons of Rick & Morty, with additional seasons coming after they air on Adult Swim.
- Two DC-related projects from producer Greg Berlanti.
- A sci-fi series called Raised by Wolves from Ridley Scott.
- Stand-up comedy specials from Conan O’Brien.
