HBO MAX ACCUMULATES 1.7 MILLION DOWNLOADS TWO WEEKS AFTER LAUNCH

HBO Max has gathered 1.7 million downloads during its first two weeks after launching, according to new data from mobile analytics firm Sensor Tower. HBO Max’s best day was on 28th May, a day after its launch, when it attracted 337,000 first-time installs from Apple App Store and Google Play users. “We had to figure out this weird way that HBO was now HBO Max, and then we had to download it and find our way in that,” Ross Clugston, Executive Creative Director at marketing agency, Superunion said. “I think that’s the story here: the story of HBO fragmenting this brand.”

HBO Max launched on 27th May in hopes of creating an ever-growing lineup of streaming services. The WarnerMedia-owned property features HBO content also includes programming from Warner Bros. The service is one of the most expensive streaming options on the market, rounding at USD 15.00, as opposed to its rival, Disney+, which launched last year at a cost of USD 7 per month or USD 70 per year, with a similarly vast array of content. Apple TV+ launched last year for $5 a month.

HBO Max has been installed by approximately 121,000 first-time U.S. users per day. That is 572% more than Now’s daily average of about 18,000 installs in the 14 days leading up to Max’s launch. SensorTower said Max’s app downloads represented a 591% increase from the 246,000 first-time installs the Now app saw in the 14 days leading up to Max’s launch. It's unlikely HBO Max downloads will spike in any significant way. HBO Max downloads in its second week were about 30% of its first-week downloads. “Consumers don’t do well with confusion,” said Dan Rayburn, an analyst at Frost & Sullivan and EVP of StreamingMedia.com. “Consumers pick services that are easy to use and they can understand.”

Sensor Tower said HBO Max’s performance in its first two weeks was quite good, compared to its predecessor HBO Now. In the two weeks leading up to HBO Max, HBO Now had 246,000 installs, according to the company. HBO Max generated 334,000 app downloads in its first 24 hours. Indeed, as the last major SVOD platform to launch, Max joined a saturated market driven by Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video.

Indeed, WarnerMedia is spending heavily to market Max as much more than HBO. The platform is targeting families with children, in addition to fans of nostalgic television shows such as “Friends,” “South Park,” “The Big Bang Theory,” and “Game of Thrones,” among others. A “Friends” reunion special remains on tap once filming can resume in the COVID-19 era. Max just renewed a second season of original series, “Love Life,” starring Anna Kendrick.