HBO shows streaming hub Max could launch in Australia as early as next year, with comments from a Warner exec all but confirming its global rollout Down Under.
Speaking at a conference last week, Warner Bros. Discovery global head of streaming and games Jean-Briac Perette said HBO's content has performed "extremely well" in two large international markets: the UK and Australia.
"We know how well our content does on both existing legacy platforms, and it drives a significant amount of the viewership," Perrette said. "So the demand is there, and there's unquestionably easy access because, ultimately, we don't have a huge amount of local originals we have to invest in."
"There's not a lot of other costs. And so those are markets where we are very confident ... of being successful in a relatively short period of time."
Warner Bros. declined to comment further, but Perrette's remarks are the closest thing we've seen to confirm Max's official launch in Australia. Seemingly, if Max does debut early next year, it will compete directly with homegrown streamer Binge, as well as its parent company, Hubbl (formerly Streamotion, and an arm of the Foxtel Group).
Binge has acted as the Aussie streaming home to HBO shows since mid-2020, with fan favourites like The White Lotus and Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon fast-tracked to the platform. HBO's biggest shows were major drawcards for early Binge subscriber growth, with the streamer raking in 1.47 million paid subscribers in Foxtel Group's latest quarterly earnings report. With some of Binge’s best shows potentially being stripped away, we can only speculate that a mass exodus may arise for the platform.
What is Max?
Other media outlets have widely speculated about Max's impending launch after Foxtel signed a multi-year deal with Warner Bros. in 2023. Foxtel CEO Patrick Delaney told The Sydney Morning Herald in October 2022 that "HBO/Warner Bros certainly are indicating they are coming to the market."
Before this, Max was the rebranded result of the Warner Bros. and Discovery merger. The streamer now houses a catalogue across The Discovery Channel network and HBO, including properties like Harry Potter and the DC Universe. Since its US launch in 2020, the platform has debuted in Latin America and is expected to expand into Europe, prior to the Paris Olympics.
Perrette expressed his excitement about HBO's new show lineup arriving soon, fuelling Max's potential global success. Perrette says audiences will have "all of our four biggest HBO tentpoles"—House of Dragon season 2 slated for June and new seasons of The Last of Us, Euphoria, and The White Lotus. He added that these releases will accompany a new Dune spin-off series and a Batman series based on the villain The Penguin, starring Colin Farrell.
