Warner Bros. Discovery and Amazon announced that HBO Max has returned to Prime Video Channels in the United States.
The move reverses a decision made when WarnerMedia was owned by AT&T to primarily offer HBO Max directly to consumers rather than through resellers like Amazon Prime Video.
The decision was one of several strategic decisions criticized by Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav after HBO Max and WarnerMedia were acquired by Discovery under Zaslav.
Removing HBO Max from Prime Video cost HBO Max about 5 millions subscribers. Warner Bros. Discovery’s new strategy is to make HBO Max as widely available as possible.
"Warner Bros. Discovery is committed to making HBO Max available to as broad an audience as possible while also advancing our data-driven approach to understanding our customers and best serving their viewing interests," Warner Bros. Discovery chief revenue and strategy officer Bruce Campbell said. "Today, we are thrilled to take an important step forward by announcing that HBO Max is returning to Prime Video Channels."
"Our common goal is to delight customers with great content and continue to collaborate and innovate so we can best serve our subscribers," added JB Perrette, president and CEO, global streaming and games, Warner Bros. Discovery.
Warner Bros. Discovery is working to combine HBO Max and Discovery Plus into a single streaming service. The new service might be called Max, according to published reports.
"We strive to offer customers the best and widest selection of premium content available for their everyday viewing experience," Prime Video VP Cem Sibay said. "It’s truly been a milestone year for Prime Video, and we are humbled by the viewer engagement and critics’ response to our marquee releases. Now with the addition of HBO Max again, customers can easily add this subscription and enjoy even more award-winning and fan-favorite entertainment on Prime Video." ■
