The name of Warner Bros. Discovery’s merged streaming service is still up in the air.
Despite reports that Max had emerged as the likely name, executives may keep the name HBO Max, the platform that was introduced in 2020 under WarnerMedia, according to Business Insider.
Research has found that HBO Max subscribers consider the streamer a must-have, and that keeping HBO in the name of the merged streamer would capitalize on the prestige of the cable brand. Internally, there is worry that the singular Max could lead to trademark disputes and be challenging to defend in web searches, the news outlet reports.
WBD moved up its plans to launch the combined company streaming service in the spring of 2023. However, there are worries that the streamer won’t have all the planned features ready at launch and could disappoint customers, according to Business Insider. The news outlet also reports the new platform will incorporate several HBO Max features with the Discovery+ tech foundation.
The app will be similar to Disney+’s platform in that it will have individual tiles for Warner Bros. Discovery’s brands. Among the platform’s landing spots will be DC Comics, Warner Bros., HBO and Discovery, CNBC previously reported.
“We can’t wait to make the service available to consumers around the globe and get the business running on all cylinders,” Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav said during the company’s most recent earnings call. “While our team is hard at work preparing for the launch of our combined offering, we’re also actively experimenting and testing our hypotheses about the future product in large part to address some of the deficiencies of the existing platform.”
Over the past three weeks, HBO Max has axed at least six shows and plans to remove multiple titles from its library, including high-end HBO dramas Westworld and The Nevers. However, the company announced it will move some of its canceled programs to third-party FAST services.
These cancellations join HBO Max’s massive content purging.
The streamer has continued to pull content left and right, including at least six HBO Max Original films, 20 original series and nearly 200 episodes of Sesame Street and various specials.
And more cuts are expected ahead of the launch of the combined streamer.
“As we work toward bringing our content catalogs together under one platform, we will be making changes to the content offering available on both HBO Max and Discovery+,” HBO Max said in a statement at the time. “That will include the removal of some content from both platforms.”