HBO tightens the screw. The smart-assing will end
Warner Bros. Discovery announces significant expansion fight against account sharing on HBO Max. As reported by JB Perrette, head of the streaming department, global implementation of the new rules will start this year. This means that solutions tested so far mainly in the United States will soon be available will also cover users in Europe, Latin America and other regions of the world.
Warner Bros. Discovery is trying to increase its user base
The company has been gradually tightening its approach to sharing passwords for a long time. In the USA, clearer messages were introduced encouraging people to purchase additional access for people outside their household for $7.99 (equivalent to approximately PLN 29) per month. Reason? Discovery sees an opportunity to increase revenues by limiting unauthorized sharing of subscriptions.
Enforcement of the new rules is just starting to gain scale and will be one of the key elements of the growth strategy in the near future. In the last quarter of 2025, HBO Max acquired 3.5 million new subscribers globally, which resulted in a total of 131.6 million users. Warner Bros. Discovery assumes that this number will increase to approximately 150 million by the end of this year.
At the same time, talks are ongoing regarding the future of the company’s streaming business. In December, Warner Bros. Discovery concluded an agreement to sell its studio and streaming platform to Netflix for $83 billion. However, negotiations have been reopened and interest in the takeover is also showing Paramount.
