Max set to raise prices as Prime Video adds more ads – streaming is great right?

Ben Schoon | May 8 2024 - 10:56 am PT

As streaming continues to evolve, Amazon Prime Video is preparing to introduce new ad formats while Max, formerly and still better known as HBO Max, is set to raise prices.

In a new report from Bloomberg, it’s said that Warner Bros. Discovery is planning to raise the price of Max. Why? In search of profits, the report brings out.

The company, the parent of CNN, HBO and the Warner Bros. studios, has also decided to raise subscription prices as it seeks to reach $1 billion in earnings from the Max and Discovery+ streaming services next year…

Warner hasn’t confirmed the price hike yet, but in a statement said it was “focused on the long-term growth” of Max and the company as a whole, and also pointed to its recent expanded content offerings.

Max prices currently start at $9.99/month for the base ad-supported plan or $15.99/month for the cheapest ad-free plan. Those prices firmly put the streamer among the most expensive available today, costing more than both Netflix and Disney+.

There’s no word on what the new pricing will be.

Meanwhile, another streaming service is also chasing additional profits.

Amazon Prime Video, which just forced ads on all users not willing to pay an additional fee, today announced new ad formats for the platform which include interactive ads and ads focused on shopping. These new ad formats would “make it easy for customers to browse and shop” during ad breaks on Prime Video, while “Interactive Pause Ads” would take over the pause screen and allow viewers – referred to by Amazon as “customers” in the announcement post – to add products related to what they’re watching to their Amazon cart.

Streaming services were once thought of the more affordable alternative to traditional cable but, as prices have continued to go up, it can often be more expensive, all while ads continue to be more prevalent.

It’s just great, isn’t it?