Warner Bros. Discovery is fulfilling its promises adding a live sports tier to its streaming service, Max. The streaming add-on, carrying the Bleacher Report brand, will be available starting October 5 at a cost of $10 per month. Existing Max subscribers won’t be charged until February 29, 2023. Unlike the previous standalone service, B/R Live, the new offering will only be accessible as part of a Max subscription.
The new sports tier will expand the coverage of Warner Bros. Discovery, including the NBA, NHL, MLB, and the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. It will also offer shows like “The Match” celebrity golf production, U.S. Soccer matches, international sports events like the 24 Hours of Le Mans and cycling races, and on-demand programming. Studio shows like “Inside the NBA” and Bleacher Report’s live video offerings will be part of the add-on tier.
All live games airing on Warner Bros. Discovery’s linear networks, such as TNT, TBS, and truTV, will be available on Max through the new tier. This move could potentially mitigate tensions between pay-TV operators and programmers, who have raised concerns about the leakage of valuable sports programming to direct-to-consumer services.
Warner Bros. Discovery previously announced plans to add news and sports to their streaming service as part of their broader streaming strategy. With the launch of CNN Max on September 27 and the subsequent sports add-on, Warner Bros. Discovery is making progress toward creating a well-rounded streaming outlet.
As of the recent quarter, Warner Bros. Discovery reported having 95.8 million global streaming subscribers, most of which are on the Max platform. Additionally, Warner Bros. Discovery is gearing up to negotiate a multi-billion rights extension with the NBA, as the league’s current deals with Disney/ESPN and Warner Bros. Discovery will expire in 2025.
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