HBO Max will be available on all Apple devices when it launches on May 27 and will be fully integrated with the Apple TV app on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and Apple TV, WarnerMedia announced Monday.
Apple and WarnerMedia also announced that that existing HBO Now customers, billed through the App Store, and HBO subscribers who subscribe through Apple TV channels, will be upgraded to HBO Max at no additional charge.
HBO Max content will be listed in the “Watch Now” feature in the Apple TV app and there will be an HBO Max menu. Universal search and Siri features will work with HBO Max as well.
New HBO Max customers will be able to subscribe directly in the app using in-app purchase.
WarnerMedia previously said that only customers who subscribe through the HBO Now website and were billed directly through HBO would get the HBO Max upgrade for free.
At launch, customers will be able to access HBO Max an older devices by streaming content from HBO Max with AirPlay.
“The availability to HBO Max across Apple devices is a great addition to our distribution offering and will provide seamless access for millions of customers,” said Rich Warren, president of WarnerMedia Distribution.
HBO Max will launch with over 10,000 hours of content including a slate of originals, with more to come. Friends, The Big Bang Theory, South Park, Gossip Girl, The West Wing, and more will be added within the first year, along with over 2,000 feature films including Casablanca, The Wizard of Oz, and The Lord of the Rings.
WarnerMedia announced April 21 it would launch the streaming service on May 27.
HBO Max will cost $15 a month when it rolls out. That’s more than double what the likes of Disney+ and Apple TV+ are charging. Some people who already subscribe to HBO will get Max included for free, though. The criteria is that you must pay for HBO through AT&T, the AT&T satellite service DirecTV, or Charter and its Spectrum services.
To avoid confusion (which is incredibly easy to do in this crowded media landscape), HBO Max is distinct from both HBO Now and HBO Go. It will have approximately 10,000 hours of content versus HBO Go and HBO Now’s 2,000+ hours of programming. Both of those other services, which also offer HBO content on demand, will continue to operate.
