Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has renewed exclusive, multi-year deals for HBO content with key local operators in Australia, Japan and the MENA region. The exclusivity of HBO content which forms a part of these deals could delay a potential launch of HBO Max in the near future across over 20 countries; which would potentially slow its original plan for HBO Max to reach 190 markets by 2026.

In Australia, WBD has extended HBO rights in a deal with Foxtel which will see its content exclusively available via the Murdoch-owned company’s pay TV service as well as its Binge and Foxtel Now streaming platforms. HBO content will also be available exclusively via the U-Next streaming service in Japan, and finally with OSN in the MENA region which serves over 20 countries including Egypt and the UAE. The deals, which cover a base of almost 8m subscribers across pay TV and SVoD, are reported as multi-year, meaning a potential HBO Max launch in these regions would be unlikely before 2025.

HBO content is incredibly important for the success of the services in these countries. Foxtel’s Binge reported record viewers for the service when HBO’s House of the Dragon premiered last year. Additionally, WarnerMedia content is consistently the most popular in Australia, with 25% of top 100 popular titles in Australia coming from the production company alone, according to the Ampere popularity index. This percentage is slightly lower in Japan and countries covered in MENA, but WarnerMedia, much of which is HBO content, is still consistently ranked as one of the most popular studios in these countries. In addition, in Australia, Binge has the highest response rate in Ampere’s Consumer survey for the answer “It has the films and TV shows that everyone is talking about” compared to any other service, further demonstrating the content’s value in this market.

Amid a cost of living crisis causing consumers to watch their spending, and widespread cost-saving measures within WBD set to total $3.5bn over the next two years, launching a direct-to-consumer streaming product in these markets would be a costly move. During its rapid global expansion, WBD may have decided that in the short term sub-licensing content to big local and regional players could be more lucrative than a direct-to-consumer move, potentially shelving an HBO Max launch indefinitely. However, WBD has alluded to still launching a streaming service in Australia in future, but may decide to license content on a non-exclusive basis to maximise potential reach.