Following a prolonged standoff between Dish Network and AT&T over licensing terms to carry HBO channels, Dish has reached an agreement with WarnerMedia to offer HBO, HBO Max, and Cinemax.
Dish TV customers nationwide will be able to access both the HBO and Cinemax networks today, though they’ll need to subscribe to HBO Max to get linear HBO. To promote the deal, Dish will run a free 10-day preview of the premium networks for existing customers right around the time the Olympics Games will be wrapping up, from August 6 to August 15. Customers don’t have to do anything to take advantage of the preview; the networks will appear automatically.
Users interested in subscribing to HBO Max can score a discounted subscription to the service’s ad-free plan at $12 per month for up to a year if they sign up before October 27th. The service normally costs $15 per month without ads, or $10 per month if you don’t mind seeing ads on non-HBO titles. Cinemax will cost an additional $10 per month and will also include the 5-Star Max and More Max channels.
Potential subscribers should keep in mind that WarnerMedia is throwing all of its 2021 slate of films on the service, where they’ll debut the same day they premiere in theaters. (However, its ad-supported tier will not include day-and-date releases like Dune, The Matrix 4, and The Suicide Squad.) Subscribing to HBO Max will also unlock HBO as well as a handful of additional premium HBO channels, including HBO Family, HBO 2, HBO Latino, and HBO Signature.
HBO East, HBO West, HBO 2, and HBO Latino can be accessed with a satellite dish, and HBO Signature, HBO Family, and HBO on-demand content will require an internet-connected Hopper or Wally receiver. HBO Max is available across connected streaming devices and on most major platforms.
The deal marks the end of a dispute over distribution terms between AT&T and Dish that’s been ongoing since 2018, but it also arrives as HBO Max — and every streamer for that matter — looks to expand its subscriber base. The launch of HBO Max and its sister networks on Dish marks “a key addition to our distribution strategy for the platform,” Scott Miller, EVP of business and legal affairs for WarnerMedia, said in a statement.
