Helen Coster and Kenneth Li for Reuters:
HBO Max, which will be HBO plus movies, original shows, and TV classics such “Friends,” will be available starting this spring to 10 million AT&T customers who are also HBO subscribers in the United States at no extra charge, according to AT&T Chief Operating Officer John Stankey, who disclosed the figures for the first time in an interview with Reuters.
These are a portion of the customers that currently pay for an AT&T-owned product such as DirecTV or AT&T wireless phone service.
[For the rest of us], HBO Max is likely to cost slightly more than the $14.99 the company charges for HBO — significantly more than competing services from Apple Inc ($4.99) and Disney ($6.99), and slightly higher than the standard $12.99 Netflix plan… Stankey also hinted at the possibility of bundling HBO Max with AT&T wireless subscriptions. T-Mobile gives away Netflix to some customers, and Verizon is providing a free year of Disney+ to some customers.
On Tuesday Stankey… and others will reveal their plans to investors, on the same stage where Warner Brothers shot actress Judy Garland’s comeback film A Star is Born.
MacDailyNews Take: At more than double the cost of Apple TV+ and Disney+ combined, HBO Max had better offer a very compelling lineup of exclusive content.