Max, previously HBO Max, is now HBO Max once more. Warner Bros. Discovery introduced the change immediately, rolling again one of many clumsiest rebrands in historical past from a streaming service that’s had greater than its share of clumsy concepts.
Proper from the beginning, it appeared like everybody outdoors of Warner Bros. Discovery knew the change was a foul one. The primary takes had been brutal, like this take from Design Issues host Debbie Millman in a Fast Company story:
“I’m utterly bewildered by the HBO Max rebrand,” says Debbie Millman, a designer, model advisor, and host of the Design Issues podcast. “HBO took 4 many years of status and casually tossed all of it right into a dumpster, lit a match, and cheered because it burned.”
In accordance with the corporate, the issue with HBO Max was the HBO half. There is a vital lesson right here, which is that your model is just not what you name your streaming service. Your model is the way in which your prospects really feel about no matter you make. On this case, the sentiments are fairly clear–this can be a dangerous thought.
Digs on the rebrand are littered all over. Like an Engadget story headlined, “Certain, ‘Max’ sounds dumb, however HBO Max wanted a reboot.” Or this Vulture quiz headlined, “Is This Streaming Service Actual or Did We Make It Up,” which jokes that Max is “a straight-up correct identify that would belong to precise folks you understand.”
Quick ahead to March. Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos even received in on the motion, calling out the absurdity of HBO’s wackadoo rebrands. Right here’s what he mentioned when Variety asked about WBD dropping “HBO” from “HBO Max”:
It was a shock! We might all the time watch what HBO was doing, and at one level they’d HBO, HBO Go, HBO Now and HBO Max. And I mentioned, “Once they’re severe, all these names will go away, and it’ll simply be HBO.” I’d have by no means guessed HBO would have gone away. They put all that effort into one factor that they’ll inform the buyer — it ought to be HBO.
After all it ought to be HBO! Everyone knows what HBO is! To place it in WBD head of streaming JB Perrette’s personal phrases after the rebrand, HBO is “a model that has been constructed over 5 many years.” It’s the community that introduced us The Sopranos and The Wire. The superb Barry. It’s the place everybody tuned in to observe Sport of Thrones.
Max had none of that, however that was the purpose, in keeping with Perrette. HBO was recognized for its edginess, and WBD wished its streaming service to be extra of a family-friendly affair. What seemingly by no means occurred to it, although, was that it changed HBO with a reputation that hasn’t introduced anybody something, ever. WBD threw out the newborn with the bathwater.
To its credit score, WBD is dealing with the swap again to HBO Max in the easiest way doable: by charging immediately at it with all the arrogance of Wile E. Coyote chasing the Roadrunner right into a faux tunnel. Here’s Adam Bader, a WBD director of product who works on the HBO Max streaming app for the Imaginative and prescient Professional:
And the official HBO X account:
In the meantime, the Max account went with a pope joke:
According to Variety in 2023, Perrette mentioned one of many causes WBD made the swap was as a result of it “was quick, tight. Says one thing common.” He added that he and the opposite senior execs had been already utilizing “Max” as shorthand for HBO Max. It’s vindicating now to see the corporate appear to confess that possibly it went slightly far by complicated their workplace slang with model recognition. HBO is again — let’s hope the standard stays, too.