HBO Max is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service, a proprietary unit of Warner Bros. Streaming on behalf of Home Box Office, Inc., which is itself a division of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD). The platform offers content from the libraries of Warner Bros., Discovery Channel, HBO, CNN, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Animal Planet, TBS, TNT, Eurosport, and their related brands. HBO Max first launched in the United States on May 27, 2020. HBO Max is the fourth most-subscribed video on demand streaming media service, after Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, and Netflix, with 128 million paid memberships worldwide.
The service also carries first-run original programming under the "Max Originals" banner, programming from the HBO pay television service, and content acquired via either third-party library deals (such as those with film studios for pay television rights) or co-production agreements (including, among others, those with BBC Studios and Sesame Workshop). When the service was first launched as HBO Max, it succeeded both HBO Now, a previous HBO SVOD service; and HBO Go, the TV Everywhere streaming platform for HBO pay television subscribers. In the United States, HBO Now subscribers and HBO pay television subscribers were migrated to HBO Max at no additional charge, subject to availability and device support. HBO Max also supplanted the streaming component of DC Entertainment's DC Universe service, with its original series being migrated to HBO Max as Max Originals. The HBO Max service began to expand into international markets in 2021.