To Subscribe Or Not To Subscribe, That Is The Question: Paid Streaming Services

[Irlandesa]

I'm tempted to get the AMC+ because of the British series "This Is Going to Hurt" but I'm undecided.

I do wish they had a sale on some channels like MHZ that carry foreign shows. 

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, DearEvette said:

this time around I got PBS masterpiece

I may be mistaken, but it seems that a small, one-time donation to join PBS a few years ago has allowed me to login and watch most of their programs when I can’t get them OTA (over the air with an antenna).  

[Stuffy]

2 hours ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I just started watching State of the Union (Season 2) after getting my 99 cents special on Prime deal.  I started with season 2, because Patricia Clarkson is one of my best friends….in my mind.  Lol.  She’s featured in season 2.  I admire her as an actress.  We’ll see what else AMC+ has to offer.  I was already getting AMC through my cable service.  

If you haven’t seen it yet, Happy Valley is on AMC+. It was well reviewed and won some tv BAFTAs. 

[roseha]

9 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

I'm tempted to get the AMC+ because of the British series "This Is Going to Hurt" but I'm undecided.

I do wish they had a sale on some channels like MHZ that carry foreign shows. 

MHZ is having a special 50 percent off sale right now

https://watch.mhzchoice.com/browse

[Irlandesa]

3 minutes ago, roseha said:

MHZ is having a special 50 percent off sale right now

https://watch.mhzchoice.com/browse

Thanks. This is great news. I'd prefer to get it through Amazon because it's so easy but I don't think Amazon is running this special. I'll see if I can add these channels on my stick/TV.

Edited July 11, 2022 by Irlandesa

[SunnyBeBe]

I’m getting ready to cancel my Amazon Music Unlimited service.  It has not lived up to its name at all.  It is very difficult to navigate.  When I do find the song I want, it freezes, buffers, stops in the middle of a song…..it’s very annoying.  I don’t encounter this type of thing with any other channel.   I don’t think they have any customer service, do they?  

[GHScorpiosRule]

1 hour ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I’m getting ready to cancel my Amazon Music Unlimited service.  It has not lived up to its name at all.  It is very difficult to navigate.  When I do find the song I want, it freezes, buffers, stops in the middle of a song…..it’s very annoying.  I don’t encounter this type of thing with any other channel.   I don’t think they have any customer service, do they?  

Just contact general customer service and let them know. They will either read off of a script, apologizing for your inconvenience, or direct you to that department.

[Jaded]

1 hour ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I don’t think they have any customer service, do they?  

Here you go...

https://www.amazon.com/hz/contact-us/foresight/hubgateway

[SunnyBeBe]

On 7/10/2022 at 4:00 PM, Stuffy said:

If you haven’t seen it yet, Happy Valley is on AMC+. It was well reviewed and won some tv BAFTAs. 

I tried to watch Happy Valley on AMC+, as I just got it.  It says I can only watch if I get the Free Crackle App.  🥴……..so, I got season 1 on Prime.  I’ll figure out seasons 2 and 3 later.  May need Crackle. Lol 

Edited July 12, 2022 by SunnyBeBe

[Stuffy]

1 hour ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I tried to watch Happy Valley on AMC+, as I just got it.  It says I can only watch if I get the Free Crackle App.  🥴……..so, I got season 1 on Prime.  I’ll figure out seasons 2 and 3 later.  May need Crackle. Lol 

No idea why it came up as Crackle unless it’s one of those prime things where you have to choose ‘More Ways to Watch’. It’s still showing up as AMC+ for me both through prime and their streaming app. I have AMC+ through a $1 a month special for the entire year.
 

You don’t have to worry about season three yet.  It was being filmed this spring. 

[SuprSuprElevated]

They've been reading here!  lol

netflix-expanding-password-sharing-crackdown-with-new-test

[shapeshifter]

5 minutes ago, SuprSuprElevated said:

They've been reading here!  lol

netflix-expanding-password-sharing-crackdown-with-new-test

Interesting that they do their testing in South American countries. 🤔

[Irlandesa]

2 hours ago, SuprSuprElevated said:

They've been reading here!  lol

netflix-expanding-password-sharing-crackdown-with-new-test

Ugh.  In that, it says you can only stream on a TV outside of your household once, for two weeks, and you can't do it at the same location again.  It refreshes every year.

So if you have a cabin, you can only stream Netflix there once for two weeks if you don't add the TV to your account?  And the months you don't use the cabin?  Just pay that surplus? 

[MaryMitch]

I like the solution someone mentioned above - require a password change every 6 months if an account has more than one login location. It sounds like they have the ability to collect that information.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, Irlandesa said:

Ugh.  In that, it says you can only stream on a TV outside of your household once, for two weeks, and you can't do it at the same location again.  It refreshes every year.

So if you have a cabin, you can only stream Netflix there once for two weeks if you don't add the TV to your account?  And the months you don't use the cabin?  Just pay that surplus? 

It’s like they are trying to lose subscribers. This is just going to piss off so many people. Like parents who have shared custody or people who repeatedly travel for work to the same location. 

1 hour ago, MaryMitch said:

I like the solution someone mentioned above - require a password change every 6 months if an account has more than one login location. It sounds like they have the ability to collect that information.

I don’t see how that would be a solution. The account owner can just give the other users the new password. 

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

So if you have a cabin, you can only stream Netflix there once for two weeks if you don't add the TV to your account?  And the months you don't use the cabin?  Just pay that surplus? 

The "surplus" is less than $2 more per month right?
I'm guessing the upkeep on someone's second home/cabin has increased a crap-ton more than 2 bucks per month due to inflation.
And if one has a cabin on a lake, maybe unplugging while there is a good thing?

My son-in-law just reupped his HBO Max subscription, resulting in my spending more time watching stuff instead of doing stuff, so if my comments sound lecture-y, know that I am mostly lecturing myself.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

The "surplus" is less than $2 more per month right?
I'm guessing the upkeep on someone's second home/cabin has increased a crap-ton more than 2 bucks per month due to inflation.

It’s only less than $2 in Argentina. The other test countries are $2.99. You have to keep in mind that Argentina has the cheapest Netflix in the world. Their basic plan is just over $3 before taxes. 

For me it’s not about if I can afford it but why should I have to pay more when I only have one household using my account. That combined with the recent price increase and an overall decline in content makes it a rip off. Netflix’s problem is that many are feeling like it is no longer worth the cost and cancelling. So their solution is to increase the cost without increasing the value. 

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

And if one has a cabin on a lake, maybe unplugging while there is a good thing?

24/7 for weeks at a time? Nope. I prefer balance and having options. 

[janie jones]

1 hour ago, Dani said:

It’s like they are trying to lose subscribers. This is just going to piss off so many people. Like parents who have shared custody or people who repeatedly travel for work to the same location.

The article linked above said it only counted on TVs, and not laptops/mobile devices. If you were traveling for work and watching on your laptop, it seems like you'd be fine.

[Guest]

20 minutes ago, janie jones said:

The article linked above said it only counted on TVs, and not laptops/mobile devices. If you were traveling for work and watching on your laptop, it seems like you'd be fine.

I saw that but I take my streaming device when I travel so it would be included. I also have my doubts that it won’t include repeated use from one location even if it isn’t using a TV. 

I also am not particularly thrilled that they are going to be tracking location usage to this extent. It feels creepy and invasive. I have VPN for that very reason but I expect they are going to make that more difficult. Honestly Netflix just isn’t worth the money or the hassle at this point. 

[meowmommy]

I'm just appalled that apparently they've lost a million subscribers but their stock still went up, because they didn't lose two million like they expected.

I don't even travel, and I don't share with another household, and I'm still offended that they want to punish you for watching the service you paid for from another location.

I'm in month five of my one month hiatus from Netflix.  Might go back temporarily when they drop a new season of The Crown, but overall it's just not worth the ever-increasing price and always present arrogance.

[Cinnabon]

Just now, meowmommy said:

I'm just appalled that apparently they've lost a million subscribers but their stock still went up, because they didn't lose two million like they expected.

I don't even travel, and I don't share with another household, and I'm still offended that they want to punish you for watching the service you paid for from another location.

I'm in month five of my one month hiatus from Netflix.  Might go back temporarily when they drop a new season of The Crown, but overall it's just not worth the ever-increasing price and always present arrogance.

Yes, I’m going to continue my pattern of canceling for a few months and then returning when there’s new content I want to watch. I won’t pay even $1 extra a month if they don’t offer more and better content. 

[Kel Varnsen]

2 hours ago, meowmommy said:

I'm just appalled that apparently they've lost a million subscribers but their stock still went up, because they didn't lose two million like they expected.

What is the time period they lost those subscribers? And is it world wide? It's kind of morbid but I wonder how many of those subscribers died of COVID?

Also streaming viewers seem kind of fickle, so it seems like all it would take was one good, super buzzworthy show for Netflix to get back a lot of those viewers. Something like Ted Lasso or season 1 Handmaid's Tale or Wandavision. The last thing I can think that Netflix might have had like that was Queen's Gambit, but that probably had a more niche audience. I am not sure they have had a big hit since first season Stranger Things. 

[Cinnabon]

1 hour ago, Kel Varnsen said:

What is the time period they lost those subscribers? And is it world wide? It's kind of morbid but I wonder how many of those subscribers died of COVID?

Also streaming viewers seem kind of fickle, so it seems like all it would take was one good, super buzzworthy show for Netflix to get back a lot of those viewers. Something like Ted Lasso or season 1 Handmaid's Tale or Wandavision. The last thing I can think that Netflix might have had like that was Queen's Gambit, but that probably had a more niche audience. I am not sure they have had a big hit since first season Stranger Things. 

Sure, some of us will come back for a buzzy new show, but we’ll watch it and then cancel again for a few months until the next one. 🤷‍♀️ I also won’t necessarily come back right away. I don’t need to see new shows as soon as they’re available. They’ll still be there when I’m ready.

Edited July 20, 2022 by Cinnabon

[peachmangosteen]

3 hours ago, Dani said:

Honestly Netflix just isn’t worth the money or the hassle at this point. 

This. I've had Netfix since like 2014. It's the only streaming service I've consistently paid for every month; the others I just get when they premiere something I wanna watch. But I'm canceling Netflix now. It's in no way worth it anymore. I'll just pick it up when Stranger Things comes back and/or Umbrella Academy if they renew it.

[SunnyBeBe]

I’m not that attached to Netflix either.  I’ll just drop it.  But, I just realized that I really don’t even watch Netflix during the week. It’s only on weekends and holidays when at my country house. So, my country house probably looks like my primary home.  And, I’ve never given anyone my password and I don’t share other people’s stuff either.  So, getting restricted because of stuff other people do is insulting.  

[Guest]

3 hours ago, Kel Varnsen said:

What is the time period they lost those subscribers? And is it world wide?

Worldwide during their second quarter (April-June).

3 hours ago, Cinnabon said:

Sure, some of us will come back for a buzzy new show, but we’ll watch it and then cancel again for a few months until the next one. 🤷‍♀️ I also won’t necessarily come back right away. I don’t need to see new shows as soon as they’re available. They’ll still be there when I’m ready.

Same for me. Given Netflix’s horrible record with show cancellations I am hesitant to get invested in anything new. 

[SunnyBeBe]

I finished up Bloodline, Safe, Clickbait, Ozark, Queen’s Gambit and I’m not interested in Stranger Things.  I won’t miss Netflix too much. 

[Irlandesa]

9 hours ago, Dani said:

I don’t see how that would be a solution. The account owner can just give the other users the new password. 

The theory is that it'd get rid of the lagging accounts.  So let's say I'm dating someone or at an acquaintance's house and we decide to watch something on Netflix.  I log into my Netflix account on their TV but don't sign out.  Now, they have access to Netflix. 

Changing passwords (so annoying by the way) wouldn't prevent the primary account holder to text their close ones the updated password.  It would get take care of those randoms, the exes, that coworker you barely talk to any longer now that you've moved onto a new job...etc.

8 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

The "surplus" is less than $2 more per month right?
I'm guessing the upkeep on someone's second home/cabin has increased a crap-ton more than 2 bucks per month due to inflation.
And if one has a cabin on a lake, maybe unplugging while there is a good thing?

My son-in-law just reupped his HBO Max subscription, resulting in my spending more time watching stuff instead of doing stuff, so if my comments sound lecture-y, know that I am mostly lecturing myself.

Good thing you added the second paragraph because I was gonna tell you not to judge my lake habits.  No work, opening the window to the lake breeze and binging a bunch of shows I want to see sounds like heaven! 

It's not just the cost, although it probably would be more expensive in the US.  It's the minute you're charging me a surcharge when I know I won't be using it makes me be more award of customizing my account.  And if I actually think about it, I might think about whether or not I'm actually watching Netflix and cancel the months I don't.

7 hours ago, janie jones said:

The article linked above said it only counted on TVs, and not laptops/mobile devices. If you were traveling for work and watching on your laptop, it seems like you'd be fine.

It depends on what they count.  Firesticks meant to play on TV?  Those are easy to travel with.  Almost every VRBO I've rented in the past few years has  Roku TV where you can log into any streaming accounts you subscribe to.  I'm in a hotel right now that has a few streaming options, including Netflix, letting you log into your own account. 

2 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

This. I've had Netfix since like 2014. It's the only streaming service I've consistently paid for every month; the others I just get when they premiere something I wanna watch. But I'm canceling Netflix now. It's in no way worth it anymore. I'll just pick it up when Stranger Things comes back and/or Umbrella Academy if they renew it.

Yeah.  I was talking to a coworker about the streaming services we subscribe to and it made me realize that I subscribe to quite a few and most are cheaper than Netflix which I don't think I've watched in months besides a documentary here and there.  And the only reason I watched the doc is because I was bored and wanted something in the background.

[janie jones]

59 minutes ago, Irlandesa said:

I'm in a hotel right now that has a few streaming options, including Netflix, letting you log into your own account. 

My husband and I were staying in a hotel a while back that had this same setup. We were like, who the heck is going to log into their personal account on a hotel TV? To each their own, though.

[Irlandesa]

9 minutes ago, janie jones said:

My husband and I were staying in a hotel a while back that had this same setup. We were like, who the heck is going to log into their personal account on a hotel TV? To each their own, though.

I haven't because I haven't watched Netflix and the previous people were still signed in (even though the hotel promises that they log out accounts upon checkout) but why not?  You don't even need to use your password. 

[janie jones]

Well exactly, because you'd forget to log out and the hotel doesn't log you out.

[meowmommy]

1 hour ago, janie jones said:

My husband and I were staying in a hotel a while back that had this same setup. We were like, who the heck is going to log into their personal account on a hotel TV? To each their own, though.

DD and I stayed in an extended stay hotel back in 2018 when we were house-hunting.  I bought a Roku streaming stick and plugged it into the hotel TV so we could see more than the crappy TV cable system offered.  Of course, we took the stick with us when we left.

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

The theory is that it'd get rid of the lagging accounts.  So let's say I'm dating someone or at an acquaintance's house and we decide to watch something on Netflix.  I log into my Netflix account on their TV but don't sign out.  Now, they have access to Netflix. 

Changing passwords (so annoying by the way) wouldn't prevent the primary account holder to text their close ones the updated password.  It would get take care of those randoms, the exes, that coworker you barely talk to any longer now that you've moved onto a new job...etc.

Yeah I understand that part but I have my doubts that would be a significant enough portion of the password sharing to to actually be effective. 

Since Netflix is going in this direction it would be smarter if they took a cue from Disney+ and apple which has a limited number of devices or locations that can be logged in. That way they can limit access without be so restrictive that it interferes with normal usage.

2 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

It depends on what they count.  Firesticks meant to play on TV?  Those are easy to travel with.  Almost every VRBO I've rented in the past few years has  Roku TV where you can log into any streaming accounts you subscribe to.  I'm in a hotel right now that has a few streaming options, including Netflix, letting you log into your own account. 

Streaming devices definitely count. At one point the article says tv or tv connected devices. 

1 hour ago, janie jones said:

Well exactly, because you'd forget to log out and the hotel doesn't log you out.

I set reminder alarms for things like that on phone all the time. And if you do forget you can log in to your account and sign out remotely. For some people it’s probably not a good idea but for many it’s not risky. 

29 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

DD and I stayed in an extended stay hotel back in 2018 when we were house-hunting.  I bought a Roku streaming stick and plugged it into the hotel TV so we could see more than the crappy TV cable system offered.  Of course, we took the stick with us when we left.

This is what I usually do.

[Irlandesa]

1 hour ago, janie jones said:

Well exactly, because you'd forget to log out and the hotel doesn't log you out.

So far I've remembered to log out.  Some Roku TVs I've seen have a guest mode where you can set the date that everything is reset.  But you can also manage your devices from your account.  So if you forget to sign out, you can later force a sign out from your account.

Quote

Since Netflix is going in this direction it would be smarter if they took a cue from Disney+ and apple which has a limited number of devices or locations that can be logged in. That way they can limit access without be so restrictive that it interferes with normal usage.

I just looked up Apple TV and it looks like the system is similar to what Netflix has.  There isn't a limit to how many devices can be logged into an Apple TV account but there is a limit to how many can stream at the same time.  Netflix has those limits too.  The basic plan limits to one stream.  The next one is 2 simultaneous streams.  And I think the top tier is 4 simultaneous streams.  I just think it's rare for more than 4 people to stream Netflix at the same time so clearly they don't have the content where there's much overlap.

[Guest]

28 minutes ago, Irlandesa said:

I just looked up Apple TV and it looks like the system is similar to what Netflix has.  There isn't a limit to how many devices can be logged into an Apple TV account but there is a limit to how many can stream at the same time.  Netflix has those limits too.  The basic plan limits to one stream.  The next one is 2 simultaneous streams.  And I think the top tier is 4 simultaneous streams.  I just think it's rare for more than 4 people to stream Netflix at the same time so clearly they don't have the content where there's much overlap.

I was thinking of the system apple used for iTunes years ago where you were limited in how many computers could play your purchased music. Netflix does the same thing with downloaded content. I usually have the basic plan so in addition to being limited to one stream, I can only use one registered device to download. Disney+ limits to 10 devices logged in at a time. Putting those kinds of restrictions seems like a more effective solution than pissing customers off with more fees.

I’d even be okay with Netflix going with a hybrid where users who use multiple locations could choose to limit their number of devices or pay for extra. 

[SunnyBeBe]

Well, if I you want to see Eddie Van Halen on Autopsy: The Last Hours live, you must “jump” through some hoops. Lol 

I discovered that I can get some things on Reelz using my Spectrum account access, however spectrum doesn’t provide the LIVE portion of Reelz. And forget Reelz Live App. That doesn’t mean live tv.  Very confusing. For live tv on Reelz, yu need Reelz.  Lol

So, I went on tv through Firestickand downloaded Philo, because Philo does provide it, however, after I downloaded it, I discovered that it’s not just $25.00 ef month to get live Reelz. It’s an extra $3.00.  But, you can’t get it through Amazon payment setup, like I had done.  It has to be directly through Philo!  I figured it out after online chat with Philo.  Whatever…..so, I’m now trying to make sure I haven’t paid twice. 🥴.  I’m not sure if I’ll keep it or not.  It seems to be the only way to view recent episodes of Autopsy. All the canned shows are very old and I’ve already seen them.  It appears they do air the new episodes on their live tv.

Edited July 24, 2022 by SunnyBeBe

[Irlandesa]

On 7/10/2022 at 9:54 PM, roseha said:

MHZ is having a special 50 percent off sale right now

https://watch.mhzchoice.com/browse

Drat.  There was a six month sale but now it's only 2 months.  I need to wait for another sale. 

[meowmommy]

I don't need it because my Peacock is included in my cable subscription, but they're offering one year for $22 right now.  Regular price is apparently $50/yr.

[RealHousewife]

1 hour ago, meowmommy said:

I don't need it because my Peacock is included in my cable subscription, but they're offering one year for $22 right now.  Regular price is apparently $50/yr.

This looks like a great deal! I have Premium Plus though. It's really nice not watching ads, but what I spend in two months is about the annual price for the current deal for Premium. Not sure if I should switch or not and how it works if I was recently charged this month's free. 

[Irlandesa]

Discovery is killing HBO Max and canceling shows in production--some that have completely wrapped and are ready to go.

I'm so sad.  This was the best service. 

[Stuffy]

19 minutes ago, Irlandesa said:

Discovery is killing HBO Max and canceling shows in production--some that have completely wrapped and are ready to go.

I'm so sad.  This was the best service. 

It’s probably the streaming service I watch the most. My yearly payment is coming up, so I switched to monthly until I know what their new streaming service is like. No way I’m keeping it for the Discovery+ shows I never watch. I’ve been trying to figure out which shows I watched are HBO vs HBO Max. May need to do some HBOMax binging since they’re already canceling and/or disappearing things. 

Edited August 4, 2022 by Stuffy

[partofme]

10 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

Discovery is killing HBO Max and canceling shows in production--some that have completely wrapped and are ready to go.

I'm so sad.  This was the best service. 

How is this possible, does Discovery own HBO?  This makes no sense.  

9 hours ago, Stuffy said:

No way I’m keeping it for the Discovery+ shows I never watch

I also have no interest in anything on Discovery+

[peachmangosteen]

25 minutes ago, partofme said:

How is this possible, does Discovery own HBO?  This makes no sense.  

I think they're merging or something. And for some reason, the new CEO thinks the good decision is to fold HBO Max/scripted programming in favor of Discovery's non-scripted stuff.

[shapeshifter]

"HBO Max could be dead — Discovery Plus rumored to take over
"By Henry T. Casey published about 18 hours ago"
https://www.tomsguide.com/news/hbo-max-could-be-dead-discovery-plus-rumored-to-take-over

A lot to sort through here, like:
"Comparing HBO Max and Discovery Plus is admittedly like comparing apples and pineapples."🍍🤔🍎

Edited August 4, 2022 by shapeshifter

[Stuffy]

This is all rumors so far.

From what I can gather, he’s trying to erase the WB debt they took on with the merger by using tax write offs or whatever you call it. They’re supposedly firing 70% of the HBOMax development department which would mean little to no original scripted content. Some of the successful HBOMax originals will go to the HBO cable network or be sold off to other streaming services. Some will be like the Batgirl and Scooby movies and will canceled to recoup the money through taxes. If they cancel a show for tax purposes, it’ll supposedly disappear because no profit can be made from that show.

There’s a meeting later today where people will get a better idea of what’s going to happen. However, they’ve already announced Magnolia content from Chip and Joanna Gaines joining HBOMax in September, so I don’t have high hopes.  

[HunterHunted]

12 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

Discovery is killing HBO Max and canceling shows in production--some that have completely wrapped and are ready to go.

I'm so sad.  This was the best service. 

Very little of what's happening with HBO Max makes any sense. It was assumed when the acquisition/merger happened that Discovery wanted Warner Bros and HBO's scripted catalog and their ability to create scripted programs. HBO Max's unscripted show development had been floundering for everything except documentaries and HBO Max wanted to tap into Discovery's unscripted catalog and unscripted show development. It made sense that Warner Bros Discovery would get rid of most of Warner's unscripted division. However, the new head of Warner Bros Discovery came from Discovery and is notoriously cheap. He's been on a real tear canceling scripted Warner Brothers and HBO Max offerings. He's said he no longer wants any HBO Max originals to be developed. That's fine, but why is he pulling HBO Max originals that were developed prior to the merger from the HBO Max streaming platform? These are shows and movies that have been on HBO Max for years. It's weird.

Canceling and pulling scripted shows suggests that he's trying to sell off the streaming rights to things they've already paid for. It's almost like he wants to destroy any possibility that a successor Warner Bros Discovery streaming service would have access to scripted content. It feels like one of two things: he wants Discovery+ to be the successor and HBO Max/HBO Now/HBO Go to be dead and that all of the streaming access to scripted Warner Bros content could be through services like Amazon Prime, Netflix, or Hulu or that he's trying to cablify their streaming content  into seperate services and make customers pay $X for HBO content, $Y of Discovery's unscripted scripted content, and $Z for things in the Warner Bros catalog. It would be something like Warner Discovery--HBO, Warner Discovery--Real, and Warner Discovery--Classic.

Edited August 4, 2022 by HunterHunted

[Guest]

2 hours ago, partofme said:

How is this possible, does Discovery own HBO?  This makes no sense.  

A few years back the massively in debt AT&T thought it would be a good idea to buy the massively in debt Time Warner which owned HBO. Shockingly that didn’t help either company get out of debt so AT&T recently decided to sell the now more massively in debt WarnerMedia to Discovery creating the $45 billion in debt Warner Bros. Discovery. 

Discovery’s leadership is in charge and is now making drastic changes to try and save the new company. One way for WBD to shed some of that debt is to kill projects before mid-August rather than having to carry them over to the new companies books. 

[meowmommy]

I guess I feel really stupid, because I've never really understood how HBO is different from HBO Max.  When they made the change, it just looked like a dolled-up version of the HBO app they already had.  Most of Max's original programming, with a few exceptions, is of no interest to me, and the old HBO, IIRC, also had some original programming.

But I also have Discovery Plus, accessed through my Amazon Prime (which is another story -- can anyone share if the interface with their standalone app is better than the gloppy mess that is AP?), so I don't know how the two would meet.

[SunnyBeBe]

Well, it’s sort of easy for me if it comes to Disney and Discovery….I have zero interest in them.  I have HBOmax now, but only for movies and a few original series.  

[Guest]

15 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

I guess I feel really stupid, because I've never really understood how HBO is different from HBO Max.  When they made the change, it just looked like a dolled-up version of the HBO app they already had.  Most of Max's original programming, with a few exceptions, is of no interest to me, and the old HBO, IIRC, also had some original programming.

HBO Max is really poorly named and makes it seem like it is just HBO’s streaming service. It is actually HBO plus everything else owned by Warner Bros like TCM, DC, Looney Tunes, WB’s movie and tv catalog.