If the company acquires any form of HBO, one of its main challenges is expected to be streamlining operations while maintaining the premium HBO brand. This could be especially difficult under “a more mainstream umbrella like Paramount+,” Alderman noted.
Streaming has already diluted the HBO brand somewhat. Thanks to streaming, HBO is now associated with content from DC Comics and Cartoon Network, as well as reality shows such as 90 Day Fiancé And Naked and scared. Merger with Paramount+ or even Netflix could further expand HBO's reach.
This expanded umbrella could allow a company like Paramount to better compete with Netflix, which is what WBD executives have done. avoided. HBO Max is “not everything for everyone in the family,” J.B. Perrett, president and CEO of streaming service WBD, said this spring.
“What do people want from us in a world with Netflix and Amazon? [Prime Video] “That’s what sets us apart,” Casey Bloys, chairman and CEO of HBO and Max content, told The Wall Street Journal in May.
'Stress test' for new streaming mergers
Beyond the impact on HBO Max subscribers, the WBD merger talks have far-reaching implications. The deal will open the door to much greater consolidation in the streaming space, something that experts have been anticipating for several years and that is geared toward a boom in streaming services. According to Clark, discussions about the Paramount-WBD merger “are less about the two studios joining forces and more about a stress test for future mergers and acquisitions.”
If WBD accepts Paramount's offer and the offer clears regulatory hurdles, it would signal that “premium content under fewer umbrellas is back in play,” Clark said.
The Paramount-WBD merger will likely accelerate the consolidation of mid-tier players such as NBCUniversal, Lionsgate and AMC, Alderman said, pointing to the companies' interest in scaling their streaming businesses and building differentiated portfolios to counter the vast libraries of Netflix and Disney+.
If Paramount and WBD don't merge, Clark expects to see more “piecemeal” strategies such as rights splits, joint ventures and streaming-as-a-service models.
