Summary

• Warner Bros. Discovery has announced a $1 monthly increase for its ad-free tier of HBO Max, the first price hike for the streaming service since its launch in May 2020.
• The move comes as Warner Bros. Discovery prepares for the spring 2023 launch of its combined streaming service, which will merge HBO Max and Discovery+ and be named Max.
• Warner Bros. Discovery is also focusing on improving the user experience and rebuilding the entire app.

Warner Bros. Discovery has announced a $1 monthly increase for its ad-free tier of HBO Max. This is the first price hike for the streaming service since its launch in May 2020, and will raise the monthly fee to $15.99 from $14.99. The new pricing will take effect for existing subscribers in their next billing cycle, or on February 11th.

The move comes as Warner Bros. Discovery prepares for the spring 2023 launch of its combined streaming service, which will merge HBO Max and Discovery+ and be named Max. The company's executives have indicated that there is room to increase the price of streaming services and that the company aims to make its streaming business profitable in the near future.

Warner Bros. Discovery has been cutting costs, such as spending on original series for HBO Max, as it looks to improve profitability. Additionally, the company is also addressing a heavy debt load stemming from the acquisition of Warner Bros. last year. The company's goal is to generate $1 billion in streaming earnings by 2025.

Warner Bros. Discovery is also focusing on improving the user experience and rebuilding the entire app. “We’re going to come out with a great product from a consumer experience perspective and that’s frankly the biggest holdback for HBO Max right now. The experience is not where it needs to be,” said Warner Bros. Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels at a conference this month.