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HBO Max to lay off 70% of staff and end scripted content (UP: Actually, no to both)

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Gay Bowser

Gay Bowser

Member
Oct 30, 2017
17,707
EagleBen said:
Love seeing the streaming bubble burst. Hopefully quite a few more services will die soon.
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This…isn't really a sign of a streaming bubble bursting.

Also, like, there really isn't a streaming bubble unless you think that there is somehow a hard limit of like three streaming services despite dozens and dozens of cable networks existing for decades.
 
subpar spatula

subpar spatula

Refuses to Wash his Ass
Member
Oct 26, 2017
22,129
Paquete_PT said:
May I ask why?
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They are money pits. It is a lot of money being burned in the hopes somehow it making a profit. Like, Disney is bleeding lots with D+. Amazon literally dropped a billion so far on season 1 of LoTR, Apple seems to be doing whatever and they may have forgotten their streaming service exists they are so rich, and Netflix is doing alright.

Like, even it doesn't crash and burn, the streaming industry is wildly out of control with cash in hopes it will recover it somehow. Cheap ass subs will kill the industry eventually.
 
Helix

Helix

Mayor of Clown Town
Member
Jun 8, 2019
23,792
Lord Fanny said:
No publisher will want to buy a studio and then also pay for a license. It's just not a good investment unless you can get a sweetheart deal that allows you to get that license for a huge amount of time on the cheap.

But again, the whole thing is moot. This whole thing never happened like this. WB wanted to sell their gaming division as a whole, there was never any credible reporting they were going to sell anything piecemeal. So this factor never came into play anyway
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TBF that was also before WB spun-off into WBD, we are talking about new management now
 
Serene

Serene

Community Resettler
Member
Oct 25, 2017
52,532
Lord Fanny said:
Where was the reporting that said they were trying to sell studios piecemeal?
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I don't think anyone reported it. I'm telling you that I know it's true. You can believe me or not if you want I don't care. lol

And to be clear they did not try to sell everything piecemeal. This sticking point with NRS came up in relation to the sale as a whole.
 
Stath

Stath

Saw the truth behind the copied door
Member
Mar 4, 2022
3,734
BringBackSonics said:
Got to remove content, so we don't overwhelm subscribers. What a load of bullshit.
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I like how that excerpt from the article is just casually thrown out there, as if it's a known hurdle to be carefully tiptoed around. Gotta be careful or we'll give people too much! Don't want to be caught slipping and give people more, because that's a thing that happens.
 
timedesk

timedesk

Member
Oct 27, 2017
4,937
Serene said:
My understanding of the NRS thing is the issue is they want to sell NRS but keep the MK IP which has been a non-starter for any buyers.
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Wow, that would insane. They've made some of the most successful fighting games in the past gen just for their parent company to want to discard them and take the IP they created. I hope if they do get sold they can keep the MK IP.

Brent Constantine said:
Venture Bros better still come out :(
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Shit, I forgot Max was behind the final VB movie. Now I'm even more depressed.
 
PlanetSmasher

PlanetSmasher

The Abominable Showman
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Oct 25, 2017
115,731
Stath said:
I like how this is just casually thrown out there, as if it's a known hurdle to be carefully tiptoed around. Gotta be careful or we'll give people too much!
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Choice paralysis is an issue with modern streaming platforms, but that's mostly a UI problem, not a content problem. Of course WB Discovery does not care about content, so they're learning the wrong lesson, like Zaslav always does.
 
subpar spatula

subpar spatula

Refuses to Wash his Ass
Member
Oct 26, 2017
22,129
rjinaz said:
Real, "stop liking what I dont like!" vibes.

100s of millions love streaming
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They sure do but it isn't really profitable unless a high price entry or annoying ads all the time. Both of which customers hate. People want $10 for everything a month with day 1 movie releases.

Financials don't meet eye to eye
 
Zeliard

Zeliard

Member
Jun 21, 2019
10,947
Serene said:
Westworld is HBO proper, it's fine
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For now. People are rightfully focusing on the Max Originals because those are the most obvious ones on the potential chopping block, but there's no guarantee the HBO proper shows are 100% safe either. The company is going through a massive cost-cutting measure so anything they view as not giving the proper returns is potentially at risk, and Westworld is probably pretty expensive (while also, as far as I can tell, not being nearly as popular as it used to be).
 
ZeoVGM

ZeoVGM

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
76,219
Providence, RI
subpar spatula said:
Makes sense. Not every streaming service has an Apple or Amazon or Disney (who is burning a fucking metric tonne of money) to operate these services. Unless WBD saw that it would be profitable or creep up on the next decade then it gets axed. It sucks for people, but companies aren't gonna fund a money pit just because you want to see John Cena react to a vagina selfie.
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This is some ridiculous oversimplification to this news.
 
Serene

Serene

Community Resettler
Member
Oct 25, 2017
52,532
Zeliard said:
For now. People are rightfully focusing on the Max Originals because those are the most obvious ones on the potential block, but there's no guarantee the HBO proper shows are 100% safe either. The company is going through a massive cost-cutting measure so anything they view as not giving the proper returns is potentially at risk, and Westworld is probably pretty expensive (while also, as far as I can tell, not being nearly as popular as it used to be).
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I expect HBO linear stuff to be mostly fine. It's possible some things end if they want to open slots for Max stuff to move over like Hacks and Peacemaker and the like, but I don't expect it to be a bloodbath like we're seeing here.
 

Deleted member 43

Account closed at user request
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Oct 24, 2017
9,271
thewienke said:
I was worried about "Gilded Age" and "And Just Like That" but I guess those are safe because they were also on HBO proper?

This seems a little confusing the way this news is getting out.
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GA is a HBO show made by the HBO team, AJLT is Max. The HBO Max content team is the one being impacted right now.

Basically go to HBO Max and look at the shows and movies you care about.

Do they say "MAX Original"? That's a MAX product and in big trouble.

Does it say "HBO Original"? Not being impacted as of now.

If it says neither, it's an older catalog title or WB movie, and also probably fine.
 
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Lord Fanny

Lord Fanny

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Apr 25, 2020
25,953
Helix said:
TBF that was also before WB spun-off into WBD, we are talking about new management now
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Yeah, as I said in my earlier post, that could change now. I was specifically talking about this conversation that started saying that the hold up on selling NRS was this MK situation. There was no reporting that this was the issue.

Serene said:
I don't think anyone reported it. I'm telling you that I know it's true. You can believe me or not if you want I don't care. lol
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So what, you have inside information, is that what you're trying to say? Well, okay, I guess. If that's what you were trying to say, maybe best to lead with that as opposed to snarky replies. I have no idea who you are, so I can only go by what was reported by sources that covered it that are largely credible, like Bloomberg.
 
J-Skee

J-Skee

The Wise Ones
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Oct 25, 2017
11,109
Is there a link to the earnings call that doesn't require registration?
 
rjinaz

rjinaz

Avenger
Oct 25, 2017
28,404
Phoenix
subpar spatula said:
They sure do but it isn't really profitable unless a high price entry or annoying ads all the time. Both of which customers hate. People want $10 for everything a month with day 1 movie releases.

Financials don't meet eye to eye
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Maybe fair but unless I am a wealthy shareholder I am not sure why I would be cheering on its demise.
 
Enduin

Enduin

You look 40
Member
Oct 25, 2017
11,487
New York
Good god tax write off shit is beyond ghoulish. Like so many people worked so hard on this shit and many of it was decent, if not good content, and they're just going to shelve it to save some cash. This whole move is just baffling.
 
ExtremelyBitter

ExtremelyBitter

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,944
I miss when the biggest worry with TV was just a low-rated show getting cancelled. Now shit like this:
Star-Lord said:

View: https://twitter.com/discussingfilm/status/1554925341248028677?s=21&t=Z2yJfHcfWtsCkT2mPhiqxA
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Now worried they're gonna tax write off Doom Patrol S4. I was fully aware that shows existence had to heavily hinge on the insane amounts of money flowing around for streaming, and I've been prepared for non-renewal every year, but they started filiming in Feb so I assumed we'd get to see whatever S4 is before Zaslav efficiency'd it out of existence. Now I'm less sure.
 
Serene

Serene

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Oct 25, 2017
52,532
Lord Fanny said:
So what, you have inside information, is that what you're trying to say? Well, okay, I guess. If that's what you were trying to say, maybe best to lead with that as opposed to snarky replies. I have no idea who you are, so I can only go by what was reported by sources that covered it that are largely credible, like Bloomberg.
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Sorry if I am coming off dismissive or harsh. This whole shitshow has affected people I know personally so I'm kinda bothered by it. Apologies.
 
BringBackSonics

BringBackSonics

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Oct 27, 2017
45,221
Seattle
Stath said:
I like how that excerpt from the article is just casually thrown out there, as if it's a known hurdle to be carefully tiptoed around. Gotta be careful or we'll give people too much! Don't want to be caught slipping and give people more, because that's a thing that happens.
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I dislike streamers that will pull off content and casually put them back on to keep things 'fresh' Wanta fresh? Make new/good content. Once something shows up on the stream (that is owned by the streamer), Unless there is a contractual reason why it needs to leave, it should god damn stay.
 
Serene

Serene

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Oct 25, 2017
52,532
EagleBen said:
How about all these people making TV shows that no one will watch instead do something productive for society.
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5HO.gif
 
andrew

andrew

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,906
John Harker said:
Yes but most importantly right now going forward …: where will my daughter and I watch Craig of the Creek
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Probably somewhere on [UNNAMED WARNER DISCOVERY SERVICE]
More_Badass said:
Is Warrior HBO or Max? Do we know?
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Max and currently filming so who tf knows what'll happen to it
Zeliard said:
For now. People are rightfully focusing on the Max Originals because those are the most obvious ones on the potential chopping block, but there's no guarantee the HBO proper shows are 100% safe either. The company is going through a massive cost-cutting measure so anything they view as not giving the proper returns is potentially at risk, and Westworld is probably pretty expensive (while also, as far as I can tell, not being nearly as popular as it used to be).
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If west world is cancelled it'll be because HBO doesn't consider it worthwhile any more. The linear hbo still makes a profit because of its revenues from cable subs
 
Plinko

Plinko

Member
Oct 28, 2017
18,575
I don't get moving everything scripted back to HBO when people are cutting cable in droves.
 
inner-G

inner-G

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
14,473
PNW
Wait, so HBO Max was different stuff than HBO?

I thought it was just an app for ppl who had HBO on cable to watch their shows on their tablet/phone/etc.
 
andrew

andrew

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Oct 25, 2017
2,906
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