HBO Max to Intensify Account-Sharing Crackdown Starting September, Boosting Paid Subscriptions
HBO Max is set to intensify its efforts against account-sharing, with the crackdown expected to become more pronounced starting next month.
During an earnings call on Thursday, JB Perrette, head of Warner Bros. Discovery’s streaming business, indicated that the current anti-piracy drive is merely in its initial stages, likening it to the first inning of a nine-inning baseball game. The company has spent several months accumulating data to distinguish legitimate subscribers from freeloaders, and Perrette stated that they now have sufficient information to optimally deploy their resources.
“We feel great about where we are,” Perrette said. “Starting in September, you’ll begin to notice a more assertive approach, shifting from a soft, cancellable messaging to one that requires subscribers to take proactive steps.”
This strengthened stance is anticipated to boost paid subscriptions during the fourth quarter of this year and beyond. HBO Max introduced a paid account-sharing option in April, allowing a primary subscriber to grant access to an additional member for an extra $7.99 per month. In Q2 alone, the platform reported an addition of 3.4 million subscribers to HBO Max.
While the crackdown aims to increase revenue through more paid subscriptions, it could potentially lead to some subscriber dissatisfaction, as several streaming services have recently implemented price hikes. Additionally, HBO Max is increasingly featuring ads on its ad-supported plan, which starts at $9.99 per month in the US.
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