Streaming fans rejoice. The joint service from Discovery Plus and HBO Max is gearing up for a 23 May launch. The not-astonishingly-named ‘Max’ was officially announced by Warner Bros Discovery at an event on 12 April.
If you’re wondering how it will make its mark in an arena already glutted with competitors, it’s bringing out the big hitters. With a tagline, “the one to watch”, it’ll take over from HBO Max, which it’s replacing, as the home of major TV series including Game of Thrones and Succession.
But fresh, must-watch content has also been announced, including The Penguin, an eight-part series which is a spinoff of Matt Reeves’ film The Batman, in which Colin Farrell will reprise his villainous role. It’ll also host the much-anticipated True Detective season 4, Night Country, starring Jodie Foster.
DC/ Max
Its horror line-up will be headed by a series based on The Conjuring films and in terms of comedy, there’s a new Big Bang Theory spinoff in the works, being developed by Chuck Lorre.
Max streaming service prices
But what will you pay for all this TV goodness? There are three tiers. For $9.99 per month, you’ll be able to watch the cheapest “Ad lite” service, which includes adverts, limits shows to HD quality and allows for two concurrent streams.
Next, the mid-priced, ad-free tier costs $15.99 per month. It’s also in HD, allows two concurrent streams and 30 downloads.
The top tier is priced at $19.99 per month, plays in 4K HDR with Dolby Atmos, allows four concurrent streams and 100 downloads.
The change means the end of the current HBO Max app, which will automatically update to the new service on 23 May. If you don’t subscribe to the service yet and you’re in the US, you can sign up at HBO Max.
As we understand it, Max will pull in content from Discovery+, but that streaming service will continue as a standalone offering separate to Max.
Is Max available outside the US?
No, but there is a workaround. If you try to sign up for HBO Max and you’re not in the US, you’ll just get a message telling you that it’s not yet available in your region.
That’s why you’ll need to download a VPN first. A VPN, or virtual private network, will let you change your IP address so that it appears to be located in another part of the world.
Investing in a VPN is, in any case, a great idea for your online security. If you need help deciding on which one to get, check out our roundup of the best VPNs available, along with pros and cons for each service, so you can find out all you need to know before signing up. Our top pick, though, is NordVPN.
Once you’ve decided on a VPN, or if you already have one, have a look at our step-by-step guide on how to use your VPN to sign up for Max.
Author: Emma Rowley, Group Home Tech Editor, Tech Advisor
Emma has been a journalist and copywriter for over 20 years and has been testing and writing about home tech and appliances for seven years. She tries out every appliance she writes about at home, and aims to recommend time- and energy-saving products that will last.