WarnerMedia's new streaming service, HBO Max, builds upon what HBO Go and HBO Now have done in the past - and here's how the three services compare to each other. Named after WarnerMedia's flagship platform, HBO forever altered the television landscape in the 1990s and 2000s with its high quality TV shows. And while HBO has maintained being a traditional TV content provider, it's now being expanded upon with HBO Max.
In the past year, Apple, Disney, and more have launched streaming services, with additional ones on the way, which has catapulted the streaming wars to new heights. HBO Max is the latest in the long line of streaming services to release in 2020, and in addition to the vast library of Warner Bros. movies and TV shows that will be available, there will also be a host of original programs as well. And in keeping with HBO's traditions of spreading out content weekly, HBO Max's Max Originals will also be similarly serialized.
For quite some time now, HBO has had their premium channel on TV in addition to HBO Go and HBO Now - two services that are accessed different but provide the same content. HBO Max is notably different from those three, and here's how HBO Max, HBO Now, and HBO Go compare to each other.
HBO Max
HBO Max is a streaming service in the same vein as Netflix and Disney+. It doesn't require a cable or satellite subscription, but current subscribers who access HBO through a TV provider will receive free access to HBO Max at launch. In addition to offering all of the content currently available on HBO Go and HBO Now, it will also feature new original programming, called Max Originals, as well as classic content from WarnerMedia's archive, like Friends, South Park , selections from Studio Ghibli, and more.
HBO GO
HBO Go is an online streaming service included free with HBO subscriptions held through a TV provider. It offers original content from HBO, all of which will be available through HBO Max, but doesn't feature any of the additional original and classic programming that HBO Max will offer. If you're a current HBO subscriber who normally accesses the network through your cable-box or satellite dish, you can log into HBO Go using any browser by entering the account info associated with your TV provider and stream the HBO catalog on your computer or mobile device.
HBO Now
HBO Now is a standalone online service that provides viewers without a cable or satellite TV subscription with access to HBO's content. It offers the same library of programming available through HBO Go, and while it does not feature any of the additional Max Originals or WarnerMedia content, current HBO Now subscribers will also receive access to HBO Max at no additional fee upon launch.
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HBO Now and HBO Go provide a simple way to access HBO's impressive catalog online for existing TV subscribers and laptop-viewers alike, while HBO Max constitutes WarnerMedia's formal entry into streaming. With an impressive lineup of original and classic programming slated for its launch, and a bold (even if old) distribution strategy that differentiates it from the competition, HBO Max could further upset the video streaming world's tenuous balance.