WarnerMedia to sunset HBO Go as HBO Max rises

The Bauminator Jeff Baumgartner, Senior Editor, Light Reading 6/15/2020

About two weeks into the HBO Max era, WarnerMedia is pushing ahead with branding changes that aim to eliminate consumer confusion surrounding the media giant's array of HBO-branded streaming services. However, those moves might ultimately cause even more confusion, at least in the near term.

Here's the general gist:

WarnerMedia will phase out HBO Go, the multiscreen streaming app for customers who subscribe to HBO through a pay-TV distributor, this summer and replace it with HBO Max, the new super-sized subscription VoD service that launched on May 27. HBO Go, a service that debuted back in February 2010, will sunset on July 31, 2020. This change covers pay-TV customers who get HBO through providers that have inked deals for HBO Max, including Altice USA, AT&T/DirecTV, Comcast, Charter Communications, Cox Communications, YouTube TV, Hulu, Verizon and operators that are part of the National Cable Television Cooperative.

However, consumers who subscribe to HBO through a pay-TV partner that still lacks a distribution deal for HBO Max (Dish Network and Sling TV are two prime examples) can still use their login credentials to access HBO content via the web, at hbogo.com, through August 31. Expect WarnerMedia to use this temporary period to buy some time to apply a bit more pressure on Dish to strike up a deal for HBO Max.

HBO Now, a standalone, OTT-delivered HBO subscription service introduced about five years ago, will be rebranded as "HBO."

According to Variety, WarnerMedia is not simply converting everything and everyone to HBO Max, in part because it does not yet have agreements in place to offer HBO Max on two key platforms – Roku and Amazon's Fire TV. However, HBO Now (which, as you might recall, is becoming "HBO") is accessible on Roku and Fire TV.

Easy peasy, right? Well, the Twitterverse had some fun with it, anyway.

me trying to understand how hbo is trying to sunset hbo go so hbo now could become hbo when hbo max also exists pic.twitter.com/y9xGSpWlD4
— angel mendoza (@angelmendoza___) June 13, 2020

This whole confusion with HBO Go, HBO Max and HBO Now, reminds me of: pic.twitter.com/qhDS5AdjPn
— Cynthia Ⓥ🐾 (@_cynthaquil) June 12, 2020

"It's simple:
1st there was HBO Go
2nd there was HBO Now
3rd there was HBO Max
HBO Go will go
And HBO Max is now HBO."

So what's HBO?

"Where you go for HBO Max."

Not HBO Go?

"There is no HBO Go."

Which was 1st?

"But not now."

And HBO now?

"Had to go."

Where?

"3rd base!" pic.twitter.com/1BbVXJVhNn
— Please Wear Your Mask (@DanSlott) June 12, 2020

It's really simple, folks:

HBO Go --> HBO Max
HBO Now --> HBO
HBO --> HBO Go
HBO Max --> wait hold on let me start over https://t.co/qyPjsQsDXc
— Alex Zalben (@azalben) June 12, 2020

HBO Go, HBO Now and HBO Max pic.twitter.com/FrMUOU07QV
— Brian Blake (@BrianOBlake) June 14, 2020

HBO Go, HBO Now, HBO When, HBO How? pic.twitter.com/7Vfuz1FwZ7
— Nor Known To Life (@Quotemeorelse) June 12, 2020

hbo go confuse the shit out of everyone pic.twitter.com/Ss9vYaPrXx
— tad wifflebawl, expert (@tadwifflebawl) June 12, 2020

It's not TV, it's HBO. I mean, NOW it's HBO. Not HBO Now. I mean, it's HBO, not HBO Max. HBO Max is It's HBO meets So Much More. HBO Now is just HBO. HBO GO is HBO Now, now.
— Alex Sherman (@sherman4949) June 12, 2020

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— Jeff Baumgartner, Senior Editor, Light Reading