HBO Is Shuttering One App & Rebranding Another To End Confusion Over The HBO Max Launch
HBO is closing down its HBO Go streaming app and rebranding its HBO Now app to help limit confusion caused after WarnerMedia launched its new streaming service, HBO Max, TVLine reported on Friday.
According to a statement from WarnerMedia, HBO Go will be shuttered and removed from “primary platforms” by the end of July. The current HBO Now app will be renamed to simply HBO. Anyone that already subscribed to HBO Now will be able to use the rebranded app.
The main reason for this change is the introduction of HBO Max, a brand-new streaming service meant to compete against other major services such as Netflix, Hulu, and Disney Plus. Warner Bros. created its own streaming app to host its many films and television series, such as the DC Comics extended universe, Friends, and much more.
“Most customers who have traditionally used HBO GO to stream HBO programming are now able to do so via HBO Max, which offers access to all of HBO together with so much more.”
However, the launch of HBO Max on May 27 caused some confusion with users who were unsure why there were multiple apps with the HBO name attached.
For most people, the HBO Now app automatically updated and became HBO Max, as anyone with an HBO subscription with “select cable providers” and HBO Now users were automatically given access to the new streaming service without having to pay extra.
Those who opted to try HBO Max without having any other HBO subscription had to pay the $14.99 monthly fee.
As TVLine noted, HBO Now was “essentially, a precursor to HBO Max,” in that it was a standalone service that would give consumers access to the many original programs created by the premium cable service. It first launched in 2015.
Just in: After some significant brand confusion around HBO Max and all the other HBO apps, WarnerMedia is officially "sunsetting" HBO Go and will rebrand HBO Now as, simply, HBO.
— Natalie Jarvey (@natjarv) June 12, 2020
The article stated that HBO Go launched in 2010 and was initially meant to serve as a way for “HBO subscribers to stream the cabler’s content on secondary devices.”
Before announcing this official change, several people took to social media to voice their concerns with the multiple HBO services and discuss fears of being charged more than once for different tiers of service after the introduction of HBO Max.
“HBO needs to get their sh*t together. I downloaded HBO Go but meant to download HBO Now then when I finally downloaded HBO Now it defaulted to HBO Max which I guess is replacing HBO Now? Also pretty sure I’m paying for duplicate accounts,” wrote Casey Neistat.
