HBO Max’s high-stakes European launch

WBD launches HBO Max across Europe knowing Netflix might own it by Q3. The strategy: partner big, price for share, bet sports drive stickiness.

HBO Max launches in Germany and Italy today (plus in 6 other European markets: Austria, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Israel and Greece), six years after Disney+ and over a decade after Netflix. The delay wasn’t strategic, Warner Bros. Discovery was locked out of several of these markets by their Sky output deal that expired December 31, 2025.

WBD’s goal: play their hand, surf on their experience and crack the top 5, fast.

The playbook for pulling this off reveals how late market entrants must compensate when they arrive with strong content but no pre-existing platform business. It also reveals how companies execute aggressive expansion while their future ownership remains uncertain. Netflix announced plans to acquire Warner Bros., including HBO Max, for $72 billion in December 2025, with deal closing expected Q3 2026 (or not). HBO Max launches knowing it might not remain independent through year's end.

Here's the strategy breakdown of a company facing the typical level of uncertainty every media company operates under right now. It’s a masterclass in resilience if you ask me.

Today at a glance:

• The playbook: Go big or go home

  • Pricing for market share

  • Ad Sales: Market-by-market approach

  • Sports timing is no coincidence

  • Local content that actually matters

• What to watch next

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The Playbook: Go big or go home

Germans and Italians know Games of thrones, Succession, The Last of Us, House of the Dragon. They even know the HBO brand as they watched these shows for over a decade on Sky Atlantic dubbed “The Home of HBO”.

New HBO series go exclusive to HBO Max starting January 13, with Sky keeping only subsequent seasons of series that already aired before the cutoff (The Last of Us Season 2, House of the Dragon Season 3, etc.). HBO Max has to convince audiences that they are worth a standalone subscription or an upgrade. To do so, they need to go all in from the get go.

→ Pricing for market share

Germany and Italy get identical pricing:

Germany and Italy launch with higher Standard and Premium pricing than France, which maintained their 2024 launch rates (€5.99 Basic, €9.99 Standard, €13.99 Premium). The €2-3 premium aligns with price increases WBD pushed across Spain and Netherlands in Q4 2025. You’ll notice HBO Max is staying clear of the 50% for life launch discount (which I got when they launched in the Netherlands back in 2022).

David Zaslav told a Goldman Sachs conference in September 2025 that US subscription costs are “way too cheap” ($10.99 for Basic with Ads, $18.49 for Standard and $22.99 for Premium). He must be choking on European pricing then. Netflix, Amazon Prime and Disney+ got here first though so HBO Max bets that aggressive pricing can accelerate subscriber acquisition where premium content positioning alone might take years.

Telegraphing 2027 price increases (€1/month across all tiers) creates urgency without hiding anything. Subscribe now, lock in 2026 rates for a year.

The pricing signals clear intent: acquire subscribers, worry about profitability later.

→ The two-track strategy