HBO Max subscriptions are becoming 10 percent more expensive, owner Warner Bros. said today. Discovery (WBD).
The HBO Max promotional plan increases from $10 to $11 per month. The ad-free plan will cost between $17 and $18.49 per month. And the ad-free premium plan (which adds 4K support, Dolby Atmos and the ability to download more content) increases from $21 to $23.
Meanwhile, prices for HBO Max's annual plans increases from $100 to $110 with ads, from $170 to $185 without ads, and from $210 to $230 for the premium tier.
For existing subscribers, the price increase will not take effect until November 20th. Diversity reported. People who try to subscribe to the streaming service will have to pay the new prices immediately.
Tips for raising prices
The price increases follow comments from WBD CEO David Zaslav last month that WBD's flagship streaming service was “much underestimated.” Speaking at the Goldman Sachs Cornucopia + Technology conference, Zaslav's arguments were based on the “quality” of the service, as well as the fact that people used to spend “an average of $55 on content 10 years ago.”
Another hint that HBO Max will become more expensive is its history of appreciation. The last time the service raised subscription fees in June 2024when the company made its ad-free plans more expensive. The first price increase for HBO Max occurred in January 2023. The service was launched in May 2020.
HBO Max is getting more expensive as streaming companies grapple with the financial realities of making robust, diverse libraries of classic, new and exclusive shows and movies available globally and on demand. HBO Max competitors Disney+, Apple TVAnd Peacock everyone has raised prices since the summer.
For years, WBD has argued that streaming services are too cheap. At the Citibank conference in 2023, WBD CFO Gunnar Weidenfels said that combining seven media distribution windows into one “and selling them at the lowest possible price does not seem like a very smart strategy.
