Max to Launch CNN Max News Streaming Service

Etan Vlessing
·2 min read
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Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max streamer is set to add 24/7 news programming to its offering with the addition of CNN Max starting Sept. 27.

The breaking news addition, launching with an open beta at no cost to subscribers, comes after the short-lived CNN+ stand-alone subscription service was shuttered one month after its launch, which forced the studio to rethink its live breaking news strategy online.

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CNN Max will add breaking news to the Hollywood studio’s entertainment streaming service as it kicks off with open beta, at no extra charge to subscribers.

CNN Max, a rebrand of the CNN originals hub, will include programming specifically built for the Max streaming audience, like CNN Newsroom with Jim Acosta, Rahel Solomon, Amara Walker and Fredricka Whitfield and CNN Newsroom with Jim Sciutto. Sciutto will lead breaking news coverage on CNN Max in the afternoons.

CNN Max will also offer series like Amanpour, Anderson Cooper 360, The Lead With Jake Tapper and The Situation Room With Wolf Blitzer. The streaming offering will be aimed at a younger audience than found on traditional TV and marks a bold gamble for Warner Bros. Discovery after the costly CNN+ launch and shutdown.

“This provides even more quality choices for Max customers who will be able to easily catch up on what is happening in the world, particularly in moments of breaking news, all within one seamless experience. We’re excited to engage our Max community in this initial beta stage to help us learn and develop what appeals most to our customers in this new genre,” JB Perrette, CEO and president, global streaming and games at Warner Bros. Discovery, said in a statement Thursday.

The launch of CNN Max comes amid the continued erosion of the traditional cable bundle, which has undercut the audience reach of 24/7 cable news channels, and follows the NBC News Now streaming service, a free, ad-supported offering that launched four years ago.

Warner Bros. Discovery is the product of a $43 billion merger between WarnerMedia and Discovery, with the combined company led by CEO David Zaslav. Part of Zaslav’s pitch to Hollywood was the creation of a streaming service that could compete with Netflix and Disney+ by combining the best of HBO’s scripted fare with Discovery’s profitable lifestyle and reality programming.

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