When CNN’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, announced the launch of CNN Max earlier this month, one of the components of the news hub on the Max streaming service was that it would be an open beta for news that would enable experimentation with product features, content offerings, and original storytelling, all with input and feedback from Max subscribers.
One of the features being tested is the ability of CNN breaking news alerts to pop up on screen while a viewer is watching one of Max’s numerous content offerings.
The pop-up alert will allow viewers to switch to live news coverage or continue watching their current program. Details of how intrusive the alert will be when it appears on the screen have yet to be divulged.
Update: A social media posting from Max PR says that they “will be very careful about how we may alert people to major news happenings.”
CNN Max represents a late entrant in the streaming news wars, and the network is playing catch-up in its effort to gain the attention of streamers. CNN Max will feature a full seven-day schedule offering a combination of new and existing programming from CNN and CNN International, and will be included in all Max subscription packages.
New programming offerings built specifically for CNN Max include editions of CNN Newsroom anchored by Jim Acosta, Jim Sciutto, Rahel Solomon, Amara Walker, and Fredricka Whitfield. CNN signature series like Amanpour, Anderson Cooper 360, The Lead with Jake Tapper, and The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer will have a home on CNN Max as well.
In bringing CNN to the Max streaming service, JB Perrette, CEO and President, Global Streaming and Games at WBD, said, “As we laid out at our launch only a few months ago, our vision for Max is to be The One to Watch for all members of a household. We have the broadest and highest quality entertainment offering, and now will include world-leading news as a meaningful addition for all Max subscribers, at no extra charge.”
It will be interesting to see how Max subscribers respond to these CNN news alerts while they’re streaming shows like South Park, and whether Max will offer subscribers the ability to opt out of it.