{"id":379685,"date":"2026-10-02T09:48:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-02T16:48:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/?p=379685"},"modified":"2026-10-02T09:48:08","modified_gmt":"2026-10-02T16:48:08","slug":"hbo-max-and-paramount-could-merge-under-skydance-one-service-after-the-october-2026-close","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/hbo-max-and-paramount-could-merge-under-skydance-one-service-after-the-october-2026-close\/","title":{"rendered":"HBO Max and Paramount+ could merge under Skydance: one service after the October 2026 close"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Skydance says it expects to complete its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery around <strong>October 6, 2026<\/strong>. That\u2019s also when <a href=\"https:\/\/paramount-plus.en.softonic.com\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Paramount+<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/hbo-max.en.softonic.com\/\" rel=\"noopener\">HBO Max<\/a>, which is sold as Max in many markets, are expected to be folded into a single streaming service, with the combined company operating under the Skydance name. For subscribers, that\u2019s the biggest shift: Paramount+ and HBO Max are expected to become one platform. Skydance still hasn\u2019t said what the service will be called, what it will cost, or when it will launch, and HBO could still stick around as a sub-brand.<\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-card-program\">\r\n  <div class=\"sc-card-program__body\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row clearfix\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-logo\">\r\n        <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"sc-card-program__img\" alt=\"HBO Max\" src=\"https:\/\/images.sftcdn.net\/images\/t_app-icon-s\/p\/a2f73840-9b6e-11e6-a5b8-00163ec9f5fa\/2934564554\/hbo-max-icon.webp\" width=\"100px\" height=\"100px\">\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-title\">\r\n        <span class=\"sc-card-program__title\">HBO Max<\/span>\r\n        <a class=\"sc-card-program__button sc-card-program-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/hbo-max.en.softonic.com\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Download<\/a>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-rating\">\r\n        <svg class=\"rating-score__content\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" version=\"1.1\" x=\"0\" y=\"0\" viewbox=\"0 0 50 50\" enable-background=\"new 0 0 50 50\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><path class=\"rating-score__background rating-score--good\" fill=\"none\" stroke-width=\"6\" stroke-miterlimit=\"10\" d=\"M40 40c8.3-8.3 8.3-21.7 0-30s-21.7-8.3-30 0 -8.3 21.7 0 30\"><\/path><path class=\"rating-score__value rating-score__value--0\" fill=\"none\" stroke-width=\"6\" stroke-dashoffset=\"0\" stroke-miterlimit=\"10\" d=\"M40 40c8.3-8.3 8.3-21.7 0-30s-21.7-8.3-30 0 -8.3 21.7 0 30\"><\/path><text class=\"rating-score__number\" content=\"\" text-anchor=\"middle\" transform=\"matrix(1 0 0 1 25 31.0837)\" data-auto=\"app-user-score\"><\/text><\/svg>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row\">\r\n      <span class=\"sc-card-program__description\"><\/span>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row\">\r\n      <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"sc-card-program__bigpic\" src=\"\" onerror=\"this.style.display='none'\">\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <a class=\"sc-card-program__link track-link sc-card-program-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/hbo-max.en.softonic.com\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">David Ellison says the service would start with about <strong>200 million subscribers<\/strong>, and analysts think that figure could rise above 240 million by 2030. Coming after Skydance\u2019s $8 billion Paramount merger in August 2025, the larger deal, valued at roughly $110 billion to $111 billion, would also bring Paramount together with Warner Bros., HBO, CBS, CNN, MTV, and an enormous film and TV library.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you subscribe to both services, this is something to watch as the deal works its way through the remaining approvals. It still needs clearance in <strong>nearly 70 countries<\/strong>, an EU sign-off tied to a United International Pictures (UIP) divestment, and a settlement with 12 US state attorneys general. Supporters say the merger gives the company a better shot at competing with the tech giants. Critics are warning about layoffs, fewer greenlights, tighter theatrical windows, and greater influence over CNN and CBS News. You probably won\u2019t get the final streaming details until Skydance takes control next October.<\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-card-program\">\r\n  <div class=\"sc-card-program__body\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row clearfix\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-logo\">\r\n        <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"sc-card-program__img\" alt=\"Paramount+\" src=\"https:\/\/images.sftcdn.net\/images\/t_app-icon-s\/p\/b477dade-eeb7-48c2-a557-8a1aa38a0100\/1442983186\/paramount-plus-icon.webp\" width=\"100px\" height=\"100px\">\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-title\">\r\n        <span class=\"sc-card-program__title\">Paramount+<\/span>\r\n        <a class=\"sc-card-program__button sc-card-program-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/paramount-plus.en.softonic.com\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Download<\/a>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-rating\">\r\n        <svg class=\"rating-score__content\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" version=\"1.1\" x=\"0\" y=\"0\" viewbox=\"0 0 50 50\" enable-background=\"new 0 0 50 50\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><path class=\"rating-score__background rating-score--good\" fill=\"none\" stroke-width=\"6\" stroke-miterlimit=\"10\" d=\"M40 40c8.3-8.3 8.3-21.7 0-30s-21.7-8.3-30 0 -8.3 21.7 0 30\"><\/path><path class=\"rating-score__value rating-score__value--0\" fill=\"none\" stroke-width=\"6\" stroke-dashoffset=\"0\" stroke-miterlimit=\"10\" d=\"M40 40c8.3-8.3 8.3-21.7 0-30s-21.7-8.3-30 0 -8.3 21.7 0 30\"><\/path><text class=\"rating-score__number\" content=\"\" text-anchor=\"middle\" transform=\"matrix(1 0 0 1 25 31.0837)\" data-auto=\"app-user-score\"><\/text><\/svg>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row\">\r\n      <span class=\"sc-card-program__description\"><\/span>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row\">\r\n      <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"sc-card-program__bigpic\" src=\"\" onerror=\"this.style.display='none'\">\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <a class=\"sc-card-program__link track-link sc-card-program-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/paramount-plus.en.softonic.com\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Skydance says it expects to complete its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery around October 6, 2026. That\u2019s also when Paramount+ and HBO Max, which is sold as Max in many markets, are expected to be folded into a single streaming service, with the combined company operating under the Skydance name. For subscribers, that\u2019s the biggest &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/hbo-max-and-paramount-could-merge-under-skydance-one-service-after-the-october-2026-close\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;HBO Max and Paramount+ could merge under Skydance: one service after the October 2026 close&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9349,"featured_media":379684,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","wpcf-pageviews":0},"categories":[1015],"tags":[],"usertag":[],"vertical":[],"content-category":[6869],"class_list":["post-379685","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","content-category-streaming-videos"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379685","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9349"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=379685"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379685\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":379686,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379685\/revisions\/379686"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/379684"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=379685"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=379685"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=379685"},{"taxonomy":"usertag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/usertag?post=379685"},{"taxonomy":"vertical","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vertical?post=379685"},{"taxonomy":"content-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content-category?post=379685"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}