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HBO Max boss confirms plans for UK launch

HBO Max boss confirms plans for UK launch
© HBO
Johannes Larcher, global head of HBO Max, confirms that the service will launch in the UK in the future.

The global head of HBO Max, Johannes Larcher, has confirmed that the service will eventually launch in the UK.

The premium streaming service offers HBO's extensive library of quality content, such as Succession, The Sopranos, Game of Thrones, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Six Feet Under and The White Lotus, alongside originals including Gossip Girl and Hacks.

The streamer also includes shows and films from across the wider WarnerMedia portfolio such as the DC movie universe, New Line Cinema, TNT and TBS.

HBO Max launched in the US two years ago and has since aggressively expanded worldwide, now operating in 61 countries - including 15 in Europe.

However, the service is currently unable to launch in the UK, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Austria or Switzerland as HBO has a long-term arrangement to exclusively provide its content to Sky in those territories - primarily for the Sky Atlantic channel.

Although that deal runs until late 2025, Larcher confirmed that when the agreement expires, HBO Max will launch as a new product in those markets.

"We have plans on the shelf for when we get to the UK," he told Broadcast.

"The end of 2025 is still some way away but we certainly know what our content strategy will be. We know what the service and the product will look like. A lot of that thinking is in place.

"To be honest we wish [a launch] could be earlier, but we will get there."

Discussing the service's competition, he continued: "I don't want to disparage our competitors but we are stewards of some of the most beloved franchises in the world - Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, the DC.

"Netflix is the global leader and inventor of this category. Disney+ is an important service if you have a young family or are a fan of Star Wars or Marvel. But it's harder to see how some of the smaller players can get to that global scale."

HBO Max is set to expand further over the next year as it combines with the discovery+ service following the merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery.

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