HBO Max: release in France, price, catalog... What to expect?

This article was updated on 07/01, including recent subscriber figures from the SVoD streaming platform.

After Netflix, Disney+, Apple TV+ and Amazon Prime Video, it's the turn of HBO Max , the video streaming service launched in 2020 in the United States, to be available in Europe from October 26.

A European launch which immediately concerns only 6 countries , and which is an opportunity to take stock of everything we know about the platform, while its arrival in France is still hypothetical .

The latest on HBO Max

What is HBO Max?

It is a new SVoD streaming service developed by WarnerMedia , which includes HBO content, but also that of the CNN, TBS and TNT channels.

In addition, this service has the catalog of films from Warner Bros studios, New Line Cinema , and DC Films (Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman...) among many others. Note that its parent company WarnerMedia also has subsidiaries in publishing and video games.

The platform has the latest news 47 million subscribers in the United States, and 73.8 million worldwide. The announced objective is to reach 120 to 150 million subscribers by 2025.

HBO Max was launched on May 27, 2020 on the American continent, and is still very unknown in Europe, and particularly in France. At issue: the agreements already made between the platform and the various broadcasters, which require a phased expansion and on a case-by-case basis.

The service thus arrives from October 26, 2021 in the first 6 European countries (Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Spain and the Principality of Andorra), before extending to 21 other European countries in 2022 : Portugal, Turkey, Greece, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Romania, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Poland, Montenegro, Moldova, North Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The platform's goal is to be in 190 countries around the world by 2026.

What films and series in the HBO Max catalog?

HBO Max has strong arguments and a very nice catalog to showcase, with more than 10,000 hours of content available.

In the list, HBO series make up a prestigious and non-negligible part of this offer. These include the popular Game of Thrones (and its future spin-offs), Watchmen, Veep, Westworld, but also the prestigious series Six Feet Under, Sex and the City, The Sopranos and The Wire.

Add to that the cult Friends, South Park, Pretty Little Liars, The Big Bang Theory or even Rick and Morty, and you have a real paradise for series lovers!

On the film side, HBO Max is also well endowed, thanks in particular to the Warner Bros studios, which will soon celebrate their century of existence.

The studios are behind cinematic classics such as The Matrix, The Green Line, Blade Runner, the Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit and Harry Potter sagas, or DC productions (i.e. all Batman films, Superman, Wonder Woman and Co).

Fans of old films will also appreciate the presence of films like Casablanca, 2001: A Space Odyssey, King Kong, or The Wizard of Oz... In short, a gold mine that will eventually become available exclusively on HBOMax!

A new release schedule?

One of the big new features offered by HBO Max in Europe will be its broadcast window between the cinema box and the SVoD box.

Indeed, HBO Max will make its cinema films available on its platform just 45 days after their theatrical release. A principle that will be implemented from 2022 in the 21 European countries concerned .

A strategy that follows the approach of Disney, which had simultaneously released films such as Mulan and Black Widow in theaters and on Disney +. In America , Warner films released by HBO Max - including Dune, Godzilla Vs Kong, The Suicide Squad - have already been made available simultaneously in theaters and on the platform .

And France? A thorny question, as the chronology of the media in France is very particular. HBO Max has not yet been announced in France, so it's a little early to say, but it's bound to be a decision that will be problematic in the years to come.

How much does HBO Max cost?

In the United States , HBO Max exists in two versions: one without advertising at $14.99 per month , and the other with advertising and lower image quality at $9.99 per month . In addition, this last option does not have access to certain parameters and to the entire catalog, and in particular must wait until recent films are no longer in theaters to be able to view them.

For its arrival in Europe , HBO Max has unveiled attractive prices. In the 6 basic European countries, the monthly subscription costs approximately €8.99 .

In addition, one formula offers a 12-month subscription for the price of 8 , which reduces the cost of the monthly subscription to only €5.99 .

For comparison, Disney+ and Netflix offer a monthly subscription from €8.99, Amazon Prime Video from €4, and Canal+ from €19.99.

If it arrives in France (which is still hypothetical), the platform should settle on similar prices.

When will HBO Max arrive in France?

As you have seen, France is one of the major absentees from the list of European countries where HBO Max will be available.

The explanation is simple: in France, OCS is the exclusive distributor of HBO content. An agreement which obviously lasts until the end of 2022, and which therefore complicates any landing of the new platform on French territory.

However, the recent arrival of Vera Peltekian, formerly of Canal+, at the head of productions for HBO Max France suggests that something is afoot.

It should be remembered that if HBO Max arrives in France, like all SVoD platforms, it will have to invest 25% of its turnover in French and European productions . A measure imposed by the recent SMAD decree, and that HBO Max seems to take seriously.

What form will the arrival of HBO Max take in France? Difficult to say, the American platform can as much decide to go it alone, as to ally itself with an actor of the SVoD of the French territory, as Disney does with Canal+.

It is too early to have more precise information concerning the arrival of the platform in France, but it is likely that this will become clearer during 2022.

The editorial staff of CNET France will obviously keep you informed.

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