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Warner Bros. Discovery posted strong Q2 2025 results, with studio revenues rising 55% YoY to $3.8 billion and HBO Max adding 3.4 million subscribers. A major company split is planned for 2026, separating Max and the studio from WBD鈥檚 legacy TV networks. Max is gaining momentum in a crowded market, with restrained ad loads and projected 85% growth in US ad revenues by 2027. With $10.76 billion earmarked for original content next year and major IP releases coming, WBD is positioning Max and its studios for standalone success. The split could offer investors a clearer, more compelling growth story.

Peacock is joining Prime Video鈥檚 ecosystem, giving viewers access to the service as an add-on with Prime subscriptions, per an Amazon announcement. The ad-free version of Comcast鈥檚 streaming platform will cost the same on Prime Video as it would individually. Peacock joins the likes of Paramount+, Apple TV+, and HBO Max in becoming part of Prime鈥檚 ecosystem. Peacock鈥檚 integration into Prime Video turns a mid-tier streamer struggling with profitability into part of a premium bundle, giving advertisers access to a larger, more engaged audience part of Amazon鈥檚 high-value ecosystem.

The news: Live-streamer Sling TV debuted day, weekend, and weeklong streaming passes as monthly subscription costs escalate. Consumers can buy a Day Pass for $4.99, a Friday-Sunday pass for $9.99, or a Week Pass for $14.99. Passes don鈥檛 auto-renew. All three passes offer access to the same 34 channels on Sling鈥檚 Orange package, including ESPN, TNT, A&E, Comedy Central, and more. Our take: If its short-term passes are successful, we can expect more streamers to follow suit and potentially offer popular IP for rent鈥攖hink 鈥淪quid Game鈥� on Netflix or 鈥淭he Gilded Age鈥� on HBO Max. That would allow advertisers to target specific, price-conscious audiences.

A new Adalytics investigation reveals that YouTube served ads from major brands like Disney, HBO Max, and Hulu alongside thousands of pirated films, live TV broadcasts, and exclusive streaming content鈥攔acking up over 250 million views. The report highlights systemic failures in YouTube鈥檚 content moderation and ad placement transparency, leaving advertisers with little visibility and minimal recourse for refunds. Worse, some studios may have inadvertently paid to retarget users who pirated their own content. As copyright enforcement lags and automation is gamed, brands and rights holders face financial, reputational, and legal risks in one of digital media鈥檚 biggest ecosystems.

The news: Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) plans to split into two separate public companies by 2026, one focused on streaming and studios and the other on global cable networks, the company announced. Its streaming company will include HBO Max and WBD鈥檚 movie properties, while the global networks company will include TNT Sports, Discovery, and CNN. Our take: WBD鈥檚 move emphasizes that sticking with a one-size-fits-all model is no longer viable given traditional TV declines and the rise of streaming. Managing decline while pursuing growth requires two fundamentally different playbooks.

HBO Max is back after a lengthy branding misstep: The pivot reflects the enduring power of HBO鈥檚 cultural and commercial identity.

The Disney, Hulu, and HBO Max bundle retained 80% of subscribers three months post-signup, surpassing Netflix in retention in the same period鈥攁 massive advantage as subscriber growth slows.

Apps for Netflix, Disney+, Apple TV+, and HBO Max subscriptions, as well as 100 video-on-demand (VOD) services, can be purchased via StreamStore, with charges added to the customer鈥檚 Comcast bill. Amazon鈥檚 Prime Video is notably missing from the mix.

Nearly half (46%) of US streaming subscribers now pay for ad-supported tiers across platforms like Disney+, Netflix, Hulu, Peacock, HBO Max, and others, according to a new report from Antenna. Over the past nine quarters, 71% of net new subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) subscribers have come from ad-supported plans.

Disney+ and Max (now HBO Max) are well balanced despite their large ad-free audiences. Amazon Prime Video and Peacock overindex on ad revenues the most, but their audiences are overwhelmingly on ad-supported tiers, making them an easy choice for marketers. Amazon also has attractive synergies as a retail media outlet.

YouTube expanded pause ads to smart TVs last year, following similar strategies from services like HBO Max, Peacock, and Hulu. 51% of viewers have taken action after viewing a pause ad, per the Video Advertising Bureau鈥攅nticing CTV platforms like Netflix to test shoppable pause ad formats.

MNTN鈥檚 self-serve approach opens the door for smaller advertisers to tap into platforms like Hulu, Peacock, and HBO Max with measurable outcomes. With ad-supported streaming now making up 46% of subscriptions and 57% of Q1 gross ads, the addressable market is expanding fast. That said, macro conditions remain a factor.

Crave鈥攚hich is home to HBO Max content in Canada鈥攊s a homegrown service and has gained more than 1 million subscribers since 2020. Gen Z and millennials are the primary consumers of digital video. Gen Z鈥檚 interest lies mainly in social video on apps like TikTok and Instagram Reels鈥攖he 18-to-24 age bracket has a penetration rate of 97.8% of internet users.

HBO Max, Netflix, and Disney+ will see more ad-supported user growth than any other major streamers this year, per our forecast. These services are known for delivering culturally significant programming that can be of high value to advertisers. Netflix is experimenting with live content in France鈥攈inting at a potential hybrid live/on-demand model.

Netflix鈥檚 enhancements to its ad-supported tier has helped it amass 5 million monthly active users worldwide, though its password crackdown could slow momentum. Meanwhile, Max, the combined streaming service of HBO Max and Discovery+, debuted to 鈥渆arly positive feedback,鈥� and Paramount+ hopes partnering with Showtime will prevent it from losing subscribers.

On today's episode, we discuss how to do ads in stores the right way, whether Google will eat the internet, whether the rebrand from HBO Max to Max worked, if the US ad market is starting to see green shoots, how successful the "Barbie" movie has been, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our analysts Ross Benes, Evelyn Mitchell-Wolf, and Max Willens.

Google put ads in its Search Generative Experience. YouTube has a new unskippable 30-second ad spot. HBO Max relaunched as Max. And The Kroger Co. is paving the way with in-store retail media. Here are what updates from these companies and more mean for advertisers.

Among the major platforms that offer both an ad-free tier and an ad-supported tier, only Max (soon to be HBO Max, again) will have fewer ad viewers than Netflix. Click here to view our full forecast for US subscription OTT video viewers, by provider. Ad-supported subscription tiers will provide most of the noteworthy growth stories this year.

Max (formerly HBO Max) is also transitioning from being entirely ad-free to growing its ad-supported base. Max鈥檚 ad revenue gains have been modest. Max also has lower ad loads than other streamers. In Q4 2023, Max鈥檚 ad-supported viewers saw 2.7 minutes of commercials per program, which was 31.7% lower than the average ad loads across streaming services monitored by MediaRadar.

Discovery鈥檚 Max (formerly HBO Max) and Comcast鈥檚 Peacock are younger than the four platforms that lead them in the chart above. However, both are set for healthy time spent growth among the population this year. Peacock will lead all platforms (47.0% growth), thanks mainly to the 2024 Summer Olympics and other live sports offerings.

Exclusive experiences like this are helping Amex to win over millennials and Gen Zers

A five-year deal in 2019 transferred the series to HBO Max (now Max). The Warner partnership provided critical financial support as viewing habits shifted away from traditional formats. Why it matters: The decision reflects Max's strategic shift toward adult and family programming, including an upcoming Harry Potter series in 2026.