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David Zaslav's plans for a Marvel-style DC Universe are in full swing. After Zaslav spun-off DC Studios as a Warner subsidiary, James Gunn and Peter Safran have announced "DC Elseworlds". The highlights: a new Superman movie, the sequel of The Batman, new movies featuring Green Lantern, Wonder Woman and the Batman characters, and new original series for (HBO) Max. Gunn and Safran announced an increased focus on storytelling and screenwriting in the films. The duo have also defended the controversial cancellation of the Max Original film Batgirl.
variety.com
variety.com
variety.com
variety.com
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A bit of a shocker... WBD is reportedly going to call off the HBO Max-Discovery+ merger and instead bundle both offerings, whilst retaining them separate and casting off some content into each platform:
www.nexttv.com
However, WBD still plans to rename HBO Max when they transition to the Discovery+ backend:
twitter.com
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They should've called it WB Max in the first place. Warner Bros is a better known brand internationally than HBO.
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The combination never made sense in the first place anyway. Discovery+ has something of a unique niche among streamers in being primarily factual-based, whereas HBO Max is in the crowded space where Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+, Parmamount+ etc roam. They are two completely different programming propositions.
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Although these reports are suggesting that the services won't merge, it's still clear they will merge in some capacity, a lot of unconfirmed reports are saying "some" Discovery content will appear, while others believe the entire platform will merge regardless, with Discovery+ being a separate service for those who do not want to watch Warner Bros content.
Ideally, I assume they would want to make this out like Disney's bundle, offering Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+ in one package, except obviously under one service and fee. I can see some benefits in this, as WBD are not losing money from the 20 million subscribers who still subscribe to Discovery+, and still gain money from the more premium service.
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And there's
this floating around:
![[Image: 1080x360]](https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_banners/1540101075205775362/1665772345/1080x360)
(Twitter)
I think WBD Max would be a better name - if this one is
really the official name for the bundle.
Watch this space...
WestKnightTV - on DeviantArt
(This post was last modified: 09-02-2023, 12:32 AM by
W. Knight.)
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I'm not a fan of using WBD in the name, it seems a bit clunky.
I'd personally brand it as a Warner Bros-branded service and add a Discovery+ hub.
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A bit late on this... The announcement of the new HBO Max offering will be unveiled on April 12, during a press day event.
bleedingcool.com
This will be further supplemented by the company's annual marketplace upfront on May 17, at the MSG Theater, where more details on how ads will be handled on the basic, ad-lite tier of the new platform:
wbd.com
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New details on the new HBO Max: Bloomberg is being told the service will be a three-tier offering similar to Netflix: a basic, ad-lite tier, the existing ad-free tier, and a new, premium tier, featuring access to 4K picture quality and exclusive features. However, the existing pricing (which just hiked in February) will be retained, with the premium tier costing around $20 US dollars a month. The addition of Discovery's content to the new offering will be focusing on their original lifestyle shows (those airing on TLC, HGTV, Food Network and so on).
www.bloomberg.com
The Wrap is also reporting (in part citing the Bloomberg report) that the HBO Max naming had worried WBD executives, as the HBO part reportedly had turned off many potential subscribers to the service and risked the brand's reputation as a pioneer on high-quality scripted content. This story also says Max is still the frontrunner for (and most likely to be) the service's new name (and not WBD+ as previously reported).
www.thewrap.com
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The vision of the WBD streamer, according to HBO's Casey Bloys: Cable TV packages.
Quote:“The combined product gives us a good way to do that, we want a product that appeals to as many people as we can – it can’t just be HBO shows, or reality shows, or whatever. It needs to be a combination for whatever mood the viewer is in.
“It is replicating that cable bundle, where you can get a wide array of programming – and frankly, that is what we are seeing all the streamers doing.”
(Television Business International)
Watch this space...
WestKnightTV - on DeviantArt
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