HBO Max launches live, in-app streaming channels
HBO Max launches live, in-app streaming channels
These channels are essentially continuous playlists that allow viewers to marathon their favorite HBO titles and more.
HBO Max has dropped a fun new feature on its subscribers just in time for the holidays, when they will have more time to stream their favorite shows. On Friday, the Warner Bros. Discovery streamer announced that it is rolling out new, curated in-app channels for a selection of its subscribers in the United States. These channels will serve much the same function as free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channels, delivering a lean-back experience that allows a viewer to let HBO Max decide what they watch next.
Key Details:
- Live now: Select HBO Max users can start watching the new channels as of Friday.
- Lots of options: Titles such as “Friends,” “Harry Potter,” and many more have been used to stock these channels with episodes.
- Engagement jump?: The use of such channels could aid HBO Max in keeping viewers using the streamer for longer.
HBO Max’s new channels will be found in a Channels content carousel on the streamer’s home page. If you don’t see it there yet, keep checking back, as the Channels rail will likely be rolling out over the coming weeks to more subscribers in the United States.
Audiences will enter into the stream at the beginning of whichever episode is playing at the time, and can fast forward to the next queued episode if they wish. These channels are available to all HBO Max subscribers, regardless of their subscription tier.
“The experience is designed for moments when users want a steady stream of fan favorites, without having to decide what to watch next. It offers another effortless way to explore and discover the iconic, robust library HBO Max has to offer,” Warner Bros. Discovery EVP Liesel Kipp said.
There are 12 channels available at launch on HBO Max, including:
- Adult Animation: Popular adult animated series from fan favorites to recent hits.
- The Big Bang Theory: Bazinga! Every nerd-centric episode.
- DC: Enter the DC Universe featuring your favorite heroes, villains, and sidekicks.
- Friends: All 10 seasons of the beloved sitcom, all the time.
- Harry Potter: The 8-film collection plus more from the wizarding world.
- Holiday Favorites: It’s always the season.
- Middle-earth: Tolkien’s classic stories come to life across two epic trilogies.
- Rick and Morty: Every season of the multiverse-spanning adult animation series.
- The Sopranos: All seasons of the legendary HBO Original series and more.
- Sex and the City: The hit series about a writer and her friends navigating life and love in New York City and more.
- True Crime: Shocking documentaries ripped straight from the headlines.
- World of Westeros: An epic collection of stories from the Seven Kingdoms.
A year ago, HBO Max launched a different type of experiment with live channels on its platform, when it added live streams of linear HBO channels for select subscribers. Disney+ first launched its streaming channels back in 2024, and HBO Max is likely hoping that the rollout will boost engagement with its platform by not forcing viewers to decide what they’ll watch next, but instead picking for them.
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.