Max returns to being HBO Max and fans are perplexed

Name changes are part of society

When cable television first came on the scene, there were two popular pay channels. The first was Home Box Office, launched in 1972, which was known as HBO. The second was Cinemax, which came along in 1980. These companies have undergone several changes that merged them into one, proving the old adage that change is the one constant in life.

Name changes are part of our society. I belonged to a church that began as Baptist, switched to Full Gospel Baptist, then Full Gospel Baptist International, and later just International. Another church in my local area completely changed the name after a few years.

A relative just told me that the company he works for has gone through three name changes in three years and now has retained the original once again as a moniker. This can be frustrating to customers who are used to saying one thing for years or decades, then have to switch.

HBO and Cinemax reigned supreme

If you were looking for a film to watch back in the day, you would find it on HBO or Cinemax. When streaming became popular, the two pay networks combined and became HBO Max in May 2020. Viewers were not in agreement and there was controversy when some of the Looney Tunes shorts were removed from the platform.

Three years later, in May 2023, HBO Max became simply Max, with new streaming tier prices and a promise of more content. Fans did not understand all the name changes, and some were disappointed that they no longer had two to choose from.

More change is in store

Consumers had just gotten used to MAx only and now another change has been revealed. Guess what the streaming service will again be known as HBO Max. The question of why all the rebranding is necessary may never be answered with certainty but here is what we know.

Warner Bros. Discovery announced Wednesday that HBO would be added back into the app’s title sometime this summer because of its longtime reputation, and because it represents the company’s … “willingness to keep boldly iterating its strategy and approach.”

Casey Bloys, the chairman and CEO of HBO and Max content, addressed the issue by saying the following about the HBO MAX name,

“far better represents our current consumer proposition” and “clearly states our implicit promise to deliver content that is recognized as unique and, to steal a line we always said at HBO, worth paying for.

MAX responds to the change

MAX responded on the X page app by tweaking its bio section to read: “These rebrands are trying to murder me.” Meanwhile, those who enjoy the streaming service remain confused about why the consolidation and name changes were necessary in the first place.

It was nice to have options and be able to choose between services, and those who enjoy streaming don't see how the name changes make anything better. Will going back to HBO Max be permanent, or will it be Max or HBO and MAX or Cinemax in a few years?

Young executives think differently

Could the name revert to HBO and Max be murdered as suggested? Time will tell. One lesson to be learned from all of this is that the days of a company retaining its name and stellar reputation for five or six decades or more seems to be over.

Some consumers say HBO and Cinemax were not broken and never needed fixing and now we have this mess. On many jobs, the workers with their boots on the ground say that executives at the top make decisions that do not work because they are so far removed. Time will tell all.