AT&T’s new streaming service HBO Max will be priced at $15 per month, significantly higher than rivals Disney and Netflix, but at the same level as subscribers pay for the existing HBO service.
By comparison Netflix is priced in the US at $12.99 per month, Disney+ at $6.99 a month and Apple TV+ at $4.99 a month.
HBO says it anticipates a global subscriber base of 90 million by 2025, including 50 million in the domestic US market.
In order to secure the subscribers, HBO plans to spent up to $4 billion on exclusive content, including a co-production deal with Comcast’s Sky Studios. There will be a Game of Thrones prequel, House of Dragons, announced days after another Game of Thrones spin-off was cancelled.
British filmmaker Sir Ridley Scott is making Raised by Wolves a sci-fi drama in which androids raise human children.
Some 88 original series will be created in 2021, 38 from HBO, and 50 targeting younger audiences and branded Max Originals.
Later, in 2021, an ad-supported version of HBO Max will be introduced. There are also talks underway to distribute the channel through platforms outside the AT&T family.
