Max Planning to Crack Down on Password Sharing

Max, the streaming service previously known as HBO Max, is cracking down on password sharing in the coming months, reports The Verge. During an earnings call today, parent company Warner Bros. Discovery said that customers will start seeing "very soft messaging" about the upcoming change.

Max Formerly HBO Max
After that initial message about password sharing, more strict rules will be put into place in 2025 and 2026. Warner Bros. Discovery CFO Gunnar Widenfels said that Max would be asking viewers who have "not signed up, or multi-household members to pay a little bit more."

Max could also get a price increase in the future, and the company has not ruled out raising the cost of a subscription. Widenfels said that there is a "fair amount of room to continue to push a price" that Max has been "judicious about."

Max has a total of 110.5 million subscribers globally, and the service is priced starting at $9.99 per month for an ad-supported version ($99.99 per year), or $16.99 per month for an ad-free version ($169.99 per year). There's also a more expensive "Ultimate" $20.99/month plan that provides 4K streaming.

Streaming services are putting an end to password sharing after Netflix successfully cracked down on the practice last year. Netflix saw its subscription numbers increase after preventing customers from sharing accounts across multiple households.

Tag: HBO Max

Popular Stories

carplay hero dashboard

iOS 26 to Upgrade CarPlay in Two Ways

Wednesday June 4, 2025 6:24 am PDT by
While the spotlight has been on CarPlay Ultra lately, the regular version of CarPlay is set to receive some enhancements alongside iOS 26. Apple will announce iOS 26 at WWDC 2025 next week, and the software update is expected to upgrade the CarPlay experience in at least two ways. The first iOS 26 beta should be seeded to developers shortly after Apple's keynote, and the update will...
General Apps Messages Redux

iOS 26: New Messages and Phone App Features Leaked Ahead of WWDC

Friday June 6, 2025 7:27 am PDT by
Apple is planning to announce several new features for the Messages and Phone apps on iOS 26, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In a lengthy report outlining his WWDC 2025 expectations today, Gurman said that the two main changes in the Messages app will be the ability to create polls, as well as the option to set a background image within a conversation. 9to5Mac was first to report...
sebastian de with living glass

Ex-Apple Designer Reveals 'Living Glass' iOS 26 Concepts

Wednesday June 4, 2025 4:17 am PDT by
Designer Sebastiaan de With has published an impressive preview of what Apple's rumored iOS redesign might look like, complete with detailed mockups and a design philosophy that he believes could reshape how users interact with their devices. With WWDC just days away, de With – co-founder of photography app maker Lux and former Apple designer – has created what he calls "Living Glass"...
iOS 26 Mock Rainbow Feature

iOS 26: All the New Features We Expect

Tuesday June 3, 2025 4:49 pm PDT by
The 2025 Worldwide Developers Conference is coming up quick, with less than a week to go before the big keynote event. We're sharing a series of rumor recaps this week, for those who want to get a sneak peek at some of the features expected in Apple's upcoming software updates. iOS 26 is definitely the OS that we've heard the most about, and rumors suggest that it's going to get a major...
General iOS Mail Feature

iPhone Users Say Mail App Suddenly Showing Blank Screen on iOS 18.5

Thursday June 5, 2025 7:02 am PDT by
If the Mail app on your iPhone is not working lately, you are not alone. A growing number of iPhone users are seeing a blank screen in the Mail app, according to comments posted across the MacRumors Forums, Reddit, Apple Support Community, and other online discussion platforms. Affected users are unable to view any emails in their inboxes, and the app can also become glitchy and...
iPhone 17 Air Size Feature

'iPhone 17 Air' Launching Later This Year With These 17 New Features

Friday June 6, 2025 6:17 am PDT by
While the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" is not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the ultra-thin device. Overall, the iPhone 17 Air sounds like a mixed bag. While the device is expected to have an impressively thin and light design, rumors indicate it will have some compromises compared to iPhone 17 Pro models, including worse battery life, only a single ...
Apple Activity Rings Graphic

Apple Watch Gets One Crucial Fitness Metric Wrong, Researchers Say

Thursday June 5, 2025 7:35 am PDT by
The Apple Watch provides highly accurate measurements of heart rate and step count, but their estimates of calories burned can be significantly off, according to a new peer-reviewed meta-analysis conducted by researchers at the University of Mississippi (via CNET). The study reviewed 56 previously published studies evaluating the Apple Watch's performance against gold-standard clinical tools ...

Top Rated Comments

Trusteft Avatar
8 months ago
Wait, subscribers have to watch ads too? lol
I am glad I don't have any of these.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
GoosePoops Avatar
8 months ago
I cancelled last year when they did the major price hike and then required an "Ultimate" plan to view 4K content. Signed up again this year when I got a promotion for 60% off a year, and then discovered the app is now filled to the brim with awful B-tier reality TV type content. Sad to see HBO have such a fall from grace in the last few years. Won't be resubscribing.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SolidAdamantium Avatar
8 months ago
I travel a lot and if I pay for 2 streams at a time, it shouldn’t matter where those streams take place, as long as I’m not exceeding my 2 streams. This seems like a BS cash grab from companies who spend way too much for content and end up losing money
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
rizzo41999 Avatar
8 months ago
Plex + home server or NAS
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SpotOnT Avatar
8 months ago

Plex + home server or NAS
That is the way to go.

You also don’t have to worry about them taking a show down or censoring it.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Sheepish-Lord Avatar
8 months ago
I know Netflix somehow proved people wrong with the crackdowns and actually GAINED more subscribers, insane btw, but eventually these plans will require you to lock in for 'X' amount of months to prevent binge watching/canceling while still receiving regular price increases.

The boomers are keeping cable TV alive and now we have this streaming ****. Nothing good every last.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)