HBO Max streaming service said to launch in May

AT&T said on Tuesday that its HBO Max streaming service would launch in May for $15 a month, joining a crowded field.

The company said HBO Max would become the “workhorse” for its video business as cord-cutting of traditional TV expands. It hopes to migrate people who pay for HBO in different ways today to the new platform.

The service grew out of AT&T’s $81-billion purchase of Time Warner, which AT&T overhauled and rechristened WarnerMedia.

HBO Max will challenge Netflix alongside Disney, Comcast and Apple. It would be the most expensive of the new services that had announced prices, which could make it challenging to expand its customer base.

It is also the same price as HBO Now, the current HBO streaming service for people who don’t get the cable channel.

Some existing subscribers to HBO’s cable channel or HBO Now will get free access to HBO Max, AT&T said.

The company said it would launch a version of HBO Max with ads in 2021, a new twist for a brand known for being ad-free. The company wants to reach 50 million subscribers in the United States by 2025, and 75 to 90 million worldwide. It expects HBO Max to be profitable starting in 2023. —AP