the prices and consequences for Streamz

The HBO Max streaming service will launch in Belgium from July 1. That made the American media company Warner Bros. Discovery announced Tuesday. The cheapest subscription costs 5.99 euros. HBO Max is known for series like Game of Thrones and The Last of Us, which can still be viewed today on the Flemish steaming service Streamz. “In the long term, all HBO content will disappear from us, but most of our subscribers are looking for local content,” said spokesperson Hanne Van Looveren.

From July 1, the content of the production house HBO will have a new home on its own streaming service HBO Max. The catalog includes popular series from the production house HBO, such as Game of Thrones, Succession and The Last Of Us. In addition, the streaming platform offers new films from Warner Bros. just like titles from the film producer’s catalogue, such as the Harry Potter series.

Viewers can also watch sports matches on HBO Max: the Eurosport channels (owned by Warner Bros. Discovery) will be available to stream, as well as tennis, cycling, golf and snooker. During the summer, HBO Max will also stream the Paris Olympics. These can be viewed with any subscription type, even without the extra sports package.

HBO Max has been available in the United States since 2020 and the service expanded to Europe in 2022. After a name change, most countries now know the streaming app as Max, but in Belgium and the Netherlands the media group is sticking to the old name, because our northern neighbors already have a radio and television broadcaster called Max.

prices

A standard subscription for HBO Max costs 9.99 euros per month, while there is a cheaper formula of 5.99 euros with advertising. According to a spokesperson, advertisements will be shown both before and during episodes. The premium offer, which allows you to watch on four instead of two screens simultaneously and in 4K resolution, costs 13.99 euros per month. Anyone who wants the sports package pays an extra 5 euros per month.

Those planning to become customers from July 1 can get access to HBO Max as early as June 11. For the first two weeks you can watch a limited catalog with only titles in English and French for free. The entire catalog will be available from July 1, including Dutch content and subtitles

Consequences for Streamz

The rights to the HBO content are currently still held by Streamz in Flanders and BeTV in French-speaking Belgium. Reality TV from Discovery and TLC, among others, will also be shown on HBO Max. “In the long term, all HBO content will disappear from us, but the pace at which this happens varies from series to series,” explains Streamz spokesperson Hanne Van Looveren. “On the program page of the series, viewers will receive a message at least 29 days in advance stating how much time they have left to watch the series on Streamz.”

Streamz has been able to prepare for the loss of English-language content. “Since the arrival in Belgium was announced last year, we have gone through various scenarios with content providers, with the aim of maintaining our strong offering of international films and series.” For example, Streamz acquired Paramount+’s films and series at the end of last year. The service therefore retains its current subscriptions and rates.

Finally, Streamz says that from the beginning it took into account the fact that the streaming market is rapidly changing. It therefore wants to rely primarily on its own strengths, and that is Flemish content. “As you know, most of our subscribers look for local content on Streamz. Last year, nine of the ten most watched programs were Flemish,” he said.

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