HBO Max has announced pricing for its ad-supported service tier, which will debut in early June. The streaming service will offer a $9.99 per month version that will include advertisements.
AT&T announced upcoming changes for its HBO Max service back in March, saying only that a lower-cost version of the service would be coming soon.
HBO Max With Ads will be “the most brand-safe, elegant experience for advertisers” in the industry, WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar said in a prerecorded segment during WarnerMedia’s upfront on Wednesday.
WarnerMedia ad sales head JP Colaco said HBO Max With Ads is launching with most major agency holding companies and an array of brands across all verticals and categories.
The Wall Street Journal reports that HBO says there will be fewer ads than on other ad-supported services. Warner Media executives told the publication that the ad load on HBO Max would be the lightest of any streaming service.
With the launch of HBO Max With Ads, WarnerMedia is introducing new ad formats. At launch, marketers will be able to buy a “brand block” of content, which will result in a “limited commercial experience” for the end viewer. Future ad formats for HBO Max With Ads include “pause ads” that show a commercial message when a user pauses content (a format Hulu offers already) and “branded discovery,” which will let marketers buy ad space within the content-discovery process on HBO Max.
Viewers will not have to deal with ads in all HBO Max shows. HBO originals content – such as “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver,” through original dramas such as “Succession,” and theatrical movies – will not include ads.
HBO Max currently offers more than 13,000 hours of programming, including all of HBO’s current and library originals – such as “The Flight Attendant,” “Hacks” and an upcoming reboot of “Gossip Girl”; licensed series including “Friends,” “The Big Bang Theory,” “Sesame Street”; and “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”; and movies from Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment.