HBO Max should offer premium audio and video with all plans
HBO Max should offer premium audio and video with all plans
The streamer has a library so good that Netflix and Paramount are in a bidding war over it. The streamer should upgrade the watching experience for all subscribers.
There’s a reason the HBO Max user interface got one of the highest scores that The Streamable gave out when ranking platform UXs last year. The service has handy playback controls, a library of relatively well-organized shows and movies, and an impressive selection of titles to browse through.
So, when it came time to determine a feature HBO Max should add, I began to think of the reputation it has built for itself. The decades-long legacy of excellence at HBO continues on the service, a reputation for quality so lasting that Netflix and Paramount Skydance are tying themselves in knots to acquire it. That’s how I think HBO Max could best improve itself: by enhancing its standing even further by expanding premium audio and visual formats like 4K video, HDR, and Dolby Atmos to all plans.
HBO Max does currently offer these formats, but only on its Premium plan, costing $23 per month or $230 per year. That’s $4.50 per month more than the Standard plan, and $12 per month more than the Basic with Ads plan, neither of which supports premium video and audio.
This is an area where I think streaming services in general are lagging behind the public. Specifically, I think the lower cost of home entertainment products that let customers take full advantage of things like HDR video or premium sound formats has given viewers the expectation that the content they watch will automatically be available in those formats.
The trouble is, most streamers — including HBO Max — only put these options on their highest-priced plans. It’s certainly understandable to go that route; after all, why even have a premium price tier if it doesn’t come with premium features?
But customers have given enough to streaming services, and it’s time to give them something back. Despite plenty of audience dissatisfaction, there has been no mass revolt to the addition of commercials to on-demand streaming platforms, and even though streaming prices rose 20% in December 2025 alone, viewers are still coming back to their favorite subscriptions.
HBO Max could lead the charge by unlocking its highest available audio and video qualities for all of its subscribers. This would give the streaming service a PR bump the likes of which it hasn’t had in years; Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav is still bitterly remembered by many as the man who kicked “Sesame Street” off HBO Max, and this would be an excellent way to get back in the public’s good graces.
It’s admittedly a long shot that HBO Max will consider expanding premium audio and visual formats to all plans. But I think it would give the streamer a real boost in public image, especially as it continues to release prestige TV shows that shape the discussion of whatever cultural moment they land in.
HBO Max
HBO Max is a subscription video streaming service that gives access to the full HBO library and exclusive Max Originals. There are hubs for content from TLC, HGTV, Food Network, Discovery, TCM, Cartoon Network, Travel Channel, ID, and more. Watch hit series like “The Last of Us,” “House of the Dragon,” “Succession,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and more. Within HBO Max, B/R Sports allows users to watch live NBA, MLB, NHL, March Madness, and NASCAR events.