• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, July 19, 2024

Perhaps Max should return to its original and obvious brand beginnings. It seems they should have stuck with HBO Max after all.

HBO originals, not surprisingly, make up the largest piece of desirable content on Warner Bros. Discovery's streamer Max -- including the “Harry Potter” franchise of movies, “Game of Thrones” and other well-known brands.

Not only does HBO content on Max have the most “supply” share -- at 17%, according to Parrot Analytics -- but consumers' desire for HBO programming on Max commands a 22% “demand share” -- well above original content under the "Max" brand demand share (9%).

It’s fairly easy to see what is going on -- users watching an HBO series or movie gravitate toward another HBO series/movie.

Behind HBO and Max are Cartoon Network (at an 8% demand share), Adult Swim (6%), Discovery Channel (6%), TLC (5%) and Food Network and HGTV each with 4%.

Overall, HBO is being used as a promotion tool to hopefully get users to watch other WBD content from their ad-supported linear cable TV networks.

The question is whether this is a good enough business model going forward. 

And then there's the question of whether Max original content has the wrong math dynamic.

Its demand share is below that of its supply share -- at 9% versus 12%. That means consumers are less interested versus the amount of content (and promotion of that content) available on the service.

Not only that but TLC, Food Network, and HGTV have the same issue -- lower demand versus available supply. There is just less interest in that content on Max.

What’s the solution? David Zaslav, CEO of Warner Bros Discovery, has already said he is increasingly interested in being an “arms dealer” -- to use a somewhat uncomfortable but increasingly used media business term, which means selling programing content to other networks, TV stations, and streaming platforms (including competitors) as a way to bolster revenues rather than putting that content on Max or other WBD-owned platforms.

Do consumers feel any of this? Are they responding in kind?