Under the WarnerMedia plan, HBO Max will pay Warner Bros.a licensing fee for the 31-day concurrent rights. The fee will be equal to the studio's portion of ticket sales in the United States. (Ticket sales are generally split 50-50 between studios and theaters.)
HBO Max also earns revenue by licensing its content to other platforms and networks. By selling the rights to certain shows and movies, the platform expands its reach and monetizes its content further.
HBO Max will pay Warner Brothers a fee for its initial 31-day window for the movie on HBO Max. That money will be shared with profit participants, cast, and crew. But these kinds of payouts will only happen in 2021, and no one should expect to see them moving forward.
HBO Films (formerly called HBO Premiere Films and HBO Pictures) is an American production and distribution company, a division of the cable television network HBO that produces feature films and miniseries.
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Is HBO Max shutting down in 2023?
But while nothing is official, the name “HBO Max” is very likely going to change in 2023. That's partially because, after spending 2022 taking content off its signature streamer, WBD plans to actually start expanding the platform's offering in 2023.
In an attempt to cut costs on projects deemed unsuitable for the brand, the new CEO David Zaslav has led HBO Max to cancel many upcoming shows and films that were close to, or even in the middle of production.
HBO is again unique because it doesn't air commercials during its programming, but sponsors are always willing to pay to have their products placed directly into a program to enhance its appeal.
An actor can expect a residual check once a show or movie re-airs on cable or a streaming service, or sells via DVD or VOD. For streamers like Max and Disney+, initial compensation covers the first 90 days a show or film is aired.
While streaming companies technically pay residuals, both unions and their members say the amounts and pay timelines leave actors and writers with a pittance of what they once received — and those who were once paid for reruns of network shows often get nothing now.
In its earnings report on Thursday, the company reported having 95.8 million global subscribers across all of its services — down from 97.6 million at the end of the first quarter of this year. Despite this, the executives at Warner Bros. Discovery don't seem too worried.
To put these companies' numbers in the right context, Netflix's revenues ($11 billion) already doubled HBO's ($6 billion) in 2017, but its profits ($800 million) were a bit over a third of HBO's ($2.15 billion) in the same period.
It's not just Disney losing customers—nearly 2 million people stopped subscribing to Warner Bros. Discovery's streaming service. Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav is grappling with a loss of lucrative U.S. subscribers after launching a merged streaming business, Max, in May.
1. Game of Thrones (2011–2019) Nine noble families fight for control over the lands of Westeros, while an ancient enemy returns after being dormant for a millennia.
1. Subscription-based Model: One of the most common ways movies make money from streaming is through subscription-based models. Platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video charge a monthly or annual fee to access their vast library of movies and TV shows.
They are the producer's responsibility, while a streamer like Netflix or Hulu pays the producer a licensing fee. Nonetheless, the structure of that system currently allows for a hit show to be streamed thousands of times while, in some cases, creators are given little to nothing in the form of residuals.
Residuals are a form of royalty payment received by actors, directors, writers and related creative professionals. They are generally negotiated by the individual's agent, and are calculated based on the continuing sales and success of a film/show/commercial, using guidelines set by the wider industry.
What is the difference between royalties and residuals?
“Royalties are a separate agreement between production companies and actors, directors, producers and writers." In other words, residuals are part of collective bargaining by industry unions while royalties are negotiated for on a deal-by-deal basis.
HBO initially priced ads on the higher end of the spectrum, at $60 to $70. Prices have since decreased to just below $50, but it remains one of the pricier streaming ad offerings.
As of the year ending December 2021, HBO had earned around 7.7 billion U.S. dollars from subscription revenue alone, up from 6.09 billion in the previous year.
Discovery CEO David Zaslav reassured listeners that HBO Max was not being destroyed, but would be “the centerpiece” of a new streaming platform that would see it combined with Discovery+ by next summer. The Maxxinistas could breathe a sigh of relief and live to fight another day.
No, John Wick: Chapter 4 will not be on HBO Max since it's not a Warner Bros. movie. Last year, the company released its films in theaters and on the streamer on the same day. However, they now allow a 45-day window between the theatrical release and the streaming release.
As Warner Bros. Discovery has been canceling shows and gradually dismantling HBO Max over the past few months, CEO David Zaslav has insisted that the entertainment giant had a plan for all of that content beyond disappearing it for tax credits and to avoid paying royalties.
