By Stuart Thomson
HBO Max is to launch in seven additional European countries next year on top of its previously announced plan to launch in 14 countries in central and eastern Europe. The service will also make Warner Bros. movies available 45 days after their theatrical release.
In addition to pre-announced markets where HBO is already present, the offering will be available in Estonia, Greece, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands and Turkey – all markets where it has yet to launch a streaming service.
The service will launch in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Moldova Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Portugal early next year. In these territories, as in this October’s launch markets, it already has streaming services operating.
The European rollout will begin on October 26 this year in the Nordic territories, Spain and Andorra, as previously announced.
Speaking on a pre-recorded launch video released this morning, Johannes Larcher, head of HBO Max International said more details of the additional territories would be unveiled “in due course”.
Larcher said WarnerMedia aimed to launch in 190 countries by 2026. On top of the 40 in the Americas, the initial European launches will up this number to 60.
He said that “engagement on our platform has been strong” in Latin America, where HBO Max is already available.
Also speaking on the launch video, GM, HBO EMEA, Christina Sulebakk said HBO Max will make Warner Bros films available on the platform just 45 days after theatrical release. “Films in the cinema now will be on your home screen just six weeks later,” she said.
Pricing of the service in the initial launch markets will be substantially below the level of the current streaming offerings. HBO Max will be available for SEK89 in Sweden, NOK89 in Norway, DKK79 in Denmark and €8.99 in Finland and Spain. There will also be an annual pass that gives subscribers 12 months of access for the price of eight.
Pricing for CEE will be announced closer to the launch date in those markets.
Sulebakk said that the streaming service was a “world class product” that would be “available almost everywhere” including through “selective distribution partners in our launch markets”.
New content on the service will include Just Like That, a follow on from Sex and the City, that will air at the time of the European launch, while Game of Thrones: House of the Dragon will be one of the more highly anticipated shows to air on the streamer next year.
WarnerMedia EMEA and Asia president Priya Dogra said HBO Max would be the home of all eight Harry Potter movies, along with “thousands of hours of content” including local programming.
Movies coming up include Space Jam: A new Legacy, The Suicide Squad and Dune. New series include a new series of Curb Your Enthusiasm and House of the Dragon.
Upcoming HBO Max originals include Ridley Scott’s Raised by Wolves and a reboot of Gossip Girl.
HBO Max will also be the home of DC content including new series Peacemaker, while local European originals will include Beforeigners, Kamikaze, Swedish comedy Lust and Spanish drama Venga Juan.
