In January 2022 I blogged about the Warner Media/Discovery Inc. merger, and how, what with each of their many sub-brands, there were just too many names. From Warner there was Warner Bros. studio, HBO, HBO Max, CNN, TNT, The Cartoon Network, and more, and from Discovery came HGTV, the Food Network, Animal Planet, TLC, and more.
Back then, I suggested the corporate brand become Warner Bros; that Discovery become the umbrella cable brand (now called linear TV); and that HBO become the sole streaming brand.
A year later they did something else entirely: HBO Max was renamed Max.
Lost in the shuffle were both HBO and the (Home) Box Office origin of the name, with “box office” evoking the excitement of seeing something new and fun, whether live theater, a comedy show, a concert, or a movie. This was entertainment worth paying for, as HBO used to say.
Clearly name changes that are truncations can work, as long as something relevant and distinctive is retained. Dunkin’ losing Donuts, for example, or Apple losing Computer. But what an own goal, trading the distinctive and branded HBO for the generic and basic boring-ness of Max.
So hallelujah, two years later HBO Max is being resurrected as the streaming brand — and if I were them I’d go all the way and drop the Max. This is sensible, especially as their own research has shown it is HBO's original programming like The Wire, Game of Thrones, Succession, and The White Lotus, as well as Warner Bros movies, that people actually watch — not the scattered Discovery content that supposedly explained and justified the Max name.
And this just in, Warner Bros. Discovery announced it will split back into two public companies. Here is a really simple corporate naming architecture: the new streaming and studios company becomes Warner Bros. with HBO as its streaming brand; and the new “global networks" company (CNN,TNT Sports, Discovery) becomes Discovery.
Voila! Just what I suggested in January 2022. Coherence and optimization, albeit three years late.
