156-571: [REDACTED] TNT Sports logo [REDACTED] Alternative logo used in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico (all used since June 1, 2024), and the United Kingdom (used since July 18, 2023) [REDACTED] Alternative TNT Sports logo used in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Mexico. This logo was used until May 31, 2024 when they adopted the UK version of
312-666: A National Hockey League (NHL) game between the New York Rangers and the Vancouver Canucks from Madison Square Garden , was transmitted that evening over channel 21—its original assigned channel on the Teleservice system—to its initial base of 365 subscribers in Wilkes-Barre. The first movie presentation shown on the service aired immediately after the hockey game concluded: the 1971 film Sometimes
468-485: A digital cable subscription or at least scrambling), and, because of controversy surrounding daytime showings of R-rated films that began being scheduled on competing premium services as early as 1980, remained in place well after the V-chip became standard in newer television sets. From April 1979 to March 1987, rating bumpers preceding HBO telecasts of R-rated films included a special disclaimer indicating to viewers that
624-495: A subscription video-on-demand service (HBO On Demand). Off-the-air maintenance periods of anywhere from a half-hour up to two hours occur at varied overnight/early morning time slots (usually preceding the 6:00 a.m. ET/PT start of the defined broadcast day) once per month on each channel. HBO transmits feeds of its primary and multiplex channels on both Eastern and Pacific Time Zone schedules. The respective coastal feeds of each channel are usually packaged together, resulting in
780-473: A 75% controlling interest in The CW; WBD and Paramount would each retain a 12.5% ownership interest in the network. Nexstar stated that Mark Pedowitz would remain chairman and CEO of the network. WBD and Paramount would still produce content for The CW as the network's main content suppliers, but Nexstar stated that the arrangement would be for the 2022–23 broadcast season , and it was given "the option to extend
936-403: A Great Notion , starring Paul Newman and Henry Fonda . To reduce subscriber churn by offering extra programming choices to subscribers, on May 8, 1991, Home Box Office Inc. announced plans to launch two additional channels of HBO and Cinemax, becoming the first subscription television services to launch " multiplexed " companion channels (a term coined by then-CEO Michael Fuchs to equate
1092-534: A TV-MA rating outside the watershed period. As of 2021 , HBO employs fairly fluid enforcement of the watershed policy, varying based on the content scheduled to air on its main channel during each programming day. The policy began to be weakened in January 2010, when the main HBO channel started allowing original series, movies, and documentaries given a TV-MA rating for strong profanity or non-graphic violence to air during
1248-567: A broader array of content. It was reported that the company had also suspended scripted development at TBS and TNT , to evaluate their strategies moving forward. The following day, Zaslav purchased approximately $ 1 million worth of WBD stock. On May 11, 2022, Warner Bros. Discovery eliminated several executive positions carried over from WarnerMedia, including Kids, Young Adults and Classics head Tom Ascheim , and general manager of TBS, TNT, and TruTV head Brett Weitz. These networks would be overseen by Finch as head of U.S. Networks, while
1404-694: A cable system franchise serving an Upper Manhattan section of New York City (covering an area extending southward from 79th Street on the Upper East Side to 86th Street on the Upper West Side), which began limited service in September 1966. Manhattan Cable was notable for being the first urban underground cable television system to operate in the United States. With external expenses resulting in consistent financial losses, in
1560-563: A combined package by many multichannel television providers; however, customers have the option of subscribing to HBO and Cinemax's corresponding channel packages individually. On August 1, 1980, HBO launched Cinemax, a companion movie-based premium channel created as a direct competitor to two existing movie-focused premium channels: The Movie Channel , then a smaller, standalone pay movie service owned by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment (then part-owned by Warner Bros. Discovery predecessor Warner Communications), and Home Theater Network (HTN),
1716-473: A consultant. WBD delivered its second-quarter earnings report on August 4, 2022. Ahead of the report, the company performed multiple cuts to HBO Max throughout July and early-August, including cutting new programming development in much of Europe, live-action children's programming development, and direct-to-streaming films—leading to the notable August 3 cancellations of the nearly-completed films Batgirl and Scoob! Holiday Haunt as tax write-offs , and
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#17327801270241872-408: A contractual commitment that would require any new owner to buy new programming from those companies, allowing them to reap some continual revenue through the network. The CW's then-president-and-CEO Mark Pedowitz confirmed talks of a potential sale in a memo to CW staffers, but added that "It's too early to speculate what might happen." On January 26, 2022, AT&T CEO John Stankey stated that
2028-440: A culture of internal competition between WarnerMedia's businesses. He also expected that "investment avoidance" via the consolidation of redundant business units (such as streaming) and staff would be one of the main ways that the company would achieve its promised $ 3 billion in cost savings. On April 21, 2022, Licht and Perrette announced the shutdown of CNN's streaming service CNN+ , which had only launched two weeks prior to
2184-750: A default HBO OTT service for Amazon Fire and Fire TV customers. As a consequence of an agreement with WarnerMedia announced the day before offering HBO Max on Roku devices starting the following day, the HBO streaming service was discontinued on December 17, 2020. Max (formerly known as HBO Max) is an over-the-top subscription streaming service operated by Warner Bros. Discovery Global Streaming and Interactive Entertainment built mainly around HBO's programming and other Warner Bros. Discovery assets. HBO's programming schedule currently consists largely of theatrically released feature films and adult-oriented original series (including, as of November 2023 , dramas such as Euphoria , Industry , The Gilded Age , House of
2340-486: A fourth HBO channel and two additional Cinemax channels, originally projected for a Spring 1997 launch. The HBO multiplex expanded to include a fourth channel on December 1, 1996, with the launch of HBO Family, focusing on family-oriented feature films and television series aimed at younger children. (HBO Family's launch coincided with the launch of Mountain Time Zone feeds of HBO, HBO2, Cinemax, and Cinemax 2, which were
2496-1117: A great thing for HBO or our brand if that had been gobbled up in the first week[..] I think it was very exciting for the viewer to have that mystery held out for an extended period." Pleper cited that he felt that binge-watching does not correlate with the culture of HBO and HBO watchers. Some of its original programs, however, have been aimed at families or children, primarily those produced before 2001 (through its original programming division and third-party producers both American and foreign) and from 2016 to 2020 (under its agreement with Sesame Workshop); children's programs that have aired on HBO have included Sesame Street , Fraggle Rock , Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child , A Little Curious , Crashbox , Babar , HBO Storybook Musicals , Lifestories: Families in Crisis , Dear America and The Little Lulu Show as well as acquisitions including The Wonderful Wizard of Oz , The Legend of White Fang , Shakespeare: The Animated Tales , Animated Hero Classics and The Country Mouse and
2652-468: A high-definition simulcast feed on June 12, 1997, with initial plans for a rollout to television providers as early as the Summer of 1998, when electronics manufacturers planned to begin retailing their initial line of HD-capable television sets. HBO began transmitting a high definition simulcast feed on March 6, 1999, becoming the first American cable television network to begin simulcast their programming in
2808-455: A long-running children's television series that had previously aired on the program's longtime broadcaster, PBS (and its morning block), for the vast majority of its run, in a five-year programming and development deal with Sesame Workshop that was announced in August 2015. Although struck with the intent to have the show remain on PBS in some fashion, the nonprofit production company reached
2964-425: A new publicly traded company. AT&T and Discovery officially confirmed the agreement the next day; the merger would be structured as a Reverse Morris Trust , with AT&T shareholders holding a 71% interest in the new company's stock and appointing seven board members, and Discovery shareholders holding a 29% interest and appointing six board members. AT&T would receive US$ 43 billion in cash and debt from
3120-639: A new studio, which will be funded by and have an exclusive, five-year distribution deal with Warner Bros. Pictures. Warner Bros. Pictures was then divided into three business units with their own leadership: former MGM executives Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy became the co-chairs of Warner Bros. Pictures and New Line Cinema , and temporarily oversaw the DC Films and Warner Animation Group units. Eight days later, WBD named former Discovery and Univision executive Luis Silberwasser as chairman of Sports. In July 2022, Alan Horn rejoined Warner Bros. as
3276-408: A nightly block), would become strongly associated with the channel among its subscribers and in pop culture . The channel began gradually scaling back its adult programming offerings in 2011, in an effort to shift focus towards its mainstream films and original programs, culminating in the removal of "Max After Dark" content from its linear and on-demand platforms in 2018, as part of a broader exit from
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#17327801270243432-650: A now-defunct service owned by Group W Satellite Communications that focused on G- and PG-rated films. Cinemax succeeded in its early years partly because it relied on classic movie releases from the 1950s to the 1970s—with some more recent films mixed into its schedule—that it presented uncut and without commercial interruption, at a time when limited headend channel capacity resulted in cable subscribers only being able to receive as many as three dozen channels (up to half of which were reserved for local and out-of-market broadcast stations, and public access channels). In most cases, cable operators tended to sell Cinemax and HBO as
3588-540: A partnership with local media company Stuff , which launched an evening newscast under the ThreeNews banner using its resources and former Newshub staff. In July 2024, CNN CEO Mark Thompson announced 100 employees would be laid off as part of a larger strategy to consolidate and integrate its television and digital operations. A week later, a smaller number of WBD employees at Max and in production, business affairs, and finance were also let go. On July 18, 2024, it
3744-439: A premium add-on through Amazon Prime Video, Sling TV , AT&T TV and Hulu . On October 15, 2014, HBO announced plans to launch an OTT subscription streaming service in 2015, which would be distributed as a standalone offering that does not require an existing television subscription to access the content. The service, HBO Now, was unveiled on March 9, 2015, and officially launched one month later on April 7. The service
3900-500: A program up to four hours, depending on the applicable time zone, in advance of their local airtime on their corresponding primary coastal feed. (Most cable, satellite, and IPTV providers, as well as its Amazon Prime Video and Roku OTT channels, only offer the East and West Coast feeds of the main HBO channel; some conventional television providers may include coastal feeds of HBO2 in certain areas, while wider availability of coastal feeds for
4056-409: A quarterly loss in subscribers), describing Warner Bros. Discovery as being a "far more balanced and competitive company" that would "invest at scale smartly" and not "overspend" on growth and that its streaming businesses would complement its linear television. He stated that HBO Max had "meaningful subscriber churn ", and that the planned merger of it with Discovery+ would help to reduce it by offering
4212-488: A single platform with a mixture of both companies' technologies. He also noted that WBD may prioritize launching Discovery+ and HBO Max as a unified platform in markets where Discovery+ has yet to launch, such as another parts of the Asia-Pacific. On March 14, 2022, Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels—who would assume the same position post-merger—confirmed that such a transition was a long-term goal. On December 22, 2021,
4368-487: A singular premium bundle, usually offered at a discount for customers that decided to subscribe to both channels. Cinemax, unlike HBO, also maintained a 24-hour schedule from its launch, one of the first pay cable services to transmit around the clock. Even early in its existence, Cinemax tried to diversify its programming beyond movies. Beginning in 1984, it incorporated music specials and some limited original programming (among them, SCTV Channel and Max Headroom ) into
4524-676: A sister production unit HBO Films , which traces its origins to the 1983 founding of HBO Premiere Films. Originally developed to produce original television movies and miniseries with higher budgets and production values than other telefilms, the film unit's first original movie project was the 1983 biopic The Terry Fox Story . Differing from other direct-to-cable television films, most of HBO's original movies have been helmed by major film actors (such as James Stewart , Michael Douglas , Drew Barrymore , Stanley Tucci , Halle Berry and Elizabeth Taylor ). The unit—which would be rechristened HBO Pictures in 1985—expanded beyond its telefilm slate, which
4680-417: A subscription to a multichannel television provider (34.939 million of which receive HBO's primary channel at minimum), giving it the largest subscriber total of any American premium channel. (From 2006 to 2018, this distinction was held by Starz Encore —currently owned by Lionsgate subsidiary Starz Inc. —which, according to February 2015 Nielsen estimates, had 40.54 million pay subscribers vs.
4836-688: A test launch of the three channels over those systems, TeleCable customers in Overland Park, Kansas ; Racine, Wisconsin ; and suburban Dallas ( Richardson and Plano, Texas ) that subscribed to either service began receiving two additional HBO channels or a secondary channel of Cinemax. HBO2 (later renamed HBO Plus, then reverted to its original name), HBO3 (now HBO Signature), and Cinemax 2 (now MoreMax) each offered distinct schedules of programs culled from HBO and Cinemax's movie and original programming libraries separate from offerings shown concurrently on their respective parent primary channels. (Cinemax
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4992-456: A two-day weekend (later extended to three days in 1997, then to a Friday-to-Monday "four-day weekend" format by 2008)—over a local origination channel, though satellite and digital cable providers elected instead to unencrypt the channels corresponding to each HBO feed for the preview period. Until 2002, interstitials hosted by on-air presenters (notably including, among others, Norm Crosby , Greg Kinnear , Sinbad and Ellen DeGeneres ) promoting
5148-424: A voluntary participation basis. (The total of participating providers that elected to offer a free preview event varies depending on the given preview period, and participating multiple-system cable operators may elect to carry the event only in certain regions where they provide service.) HBO also produces short segments promoting newer movies with the cooperation of the film studios that hold distribution rights to
5304-554: Is HBO's companion subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service that is available at no additional cost to subscribers of the linear television service, who regularly pay a premium fee to pay television providers to receive access to the channel. VOD content from the network is also available on select virtual MVPD services (including DirecTV Stream , YouTube TV and Hulu ), and through HBO's dedicated Roku video channel. HBO on Demand offers theatrical feature films from HBO's distribution partners and original programming previously seen on
5460-610: Is a high definition simulcast feed of HBO that broadcasts in the 1080i resolution format. HBO maintains high definition simulcast feeds of its main channel and all six multiplex channels. HBO HD is available on all major cable television providers including, among others, Charter Communications (including systems once owned by former HBO sister company Time Warner Cable); Comcast Xfinity (which, in 2016, began downconverting HBO, Cinemax and other cable channels transmitting in 1080i to 720p 60); Cox Communications and Optimum ; as well as DirecTV ; AT&T U-verse ; and Verizon FiOS . From
5616-629: Is also responsible for promoting many of the major motion picture releases, via its behind-the-scenes featurette programs. HBO, via the beyond-the-scenes interstitial programs was the first network to promote many of these movies. They included, but were not limited to, The Godfather , The Godfather Part 2 , French Connection 2 , Jaws , Halloween , Star Wars , Star Trek , 9 to 5 , Sixteen Candles , Mac and Me , Home Alone , Home Alone 2: Lost in New York , A Few Good Men , Scream , and I Know What You Did Last Summer . In
5772-701: Is an American pay television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc. , itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery . The overall Home Box Office business unit is based at Warner Bros. Discovery's corporate headquarters inside 30 Hudson Yards in Manhattan . Programming featured on the network consists primarily of theatrically released motion pictures and original television programs as well as made-for-cable movies, documentaries, occasional comedy, and concert specials , and periodic interstitial programs (consisting of short films and making-of documentaries). HBO
5928-588: Is developed for and production is primarily, if not exclusively, handled by the channel of its originating broadcast. Since 1973, the network has produced a variety of original programs alongside its slate of theatrical motion pictures. Most of these programs cater to adult viewers (and, with limited exceptions, are typically assigned TV-MA ratings ), often featuring—with such content varying by program—high amounts of profanity, violence, sexual themes or nudity that basic cable or over-the-air broadcast channels would be reticent to air because of objections from sponsors and
6084-500: Is different from Wikidata All set index articles Warner Bros. Discovery Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. ( WBD ) is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered in New York City . It was formed from WarnerMedia 's spin-off by AT&T and merger with Discovery, Inc. on April 8, 2022. The company's properties are divided into nine business units, consisting of
6240-408: Is the centerpiece of Max (previously HBO Max from 2020 to 2023), an expanded streaming platform operated separately from but sharing management with Home Box Office, Inc., which also includes original programming produced exclusively for the service and content from other Warner Bros. Discovery properties. Livestreams of the network's linear East and West Coast feeds are not presently accessible on
6396-432: Is the oldest subscription television service in the United States still in operation, as well as the country's first cable-originated television network (both as a regional microwave - and national satellite -transmitted service). HBO pioneered modern pay television upon its launch on November 8, 1972: it was the first television service to be directly transmitted and distributed to individual cable television systems, and
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6552-625: The COVID-19 pandemic to contractually transfer their credentials to HBO Max), though only through the HBO Go desktop website. The "HBO Go" moniker remains in use as the brand for HBO's streaming platforms in select Asian markets until it would be also rebranded directly into Max in fall-2024. HBO Now (formally named HBO from August to December 2020) was an over-the-top (OTT) subscription streaming service that provided on-demand access to HBO's library of original programming and theatrical films, and
6708-709: The Discovery+ and Max streaming services, as well as the video game publisher Warner Bros. Games ), and International Networks. It also holds a one-eighth stake in The CW (with Paramount Global also owning a one-eighth stake), and a majority stake in Television Food Network, G.P. (comprising Food Network and Cooking Channel ), which are co-owned by Nexstar Media Group . Warner Bros. , Turner Broadcasting System , Scripps Networks Interactive and Discovery, Inc. have conjoined histories. Warner Bros.
6864-689: The HBO First Look series of 15-to-20-minute-long documentary-style interstitial specials, which debuted in 1992 and has no set airing schedule. (Since 2010, the "making of" specials, for which HBO officially no longer uses the First Look name, are only identified under the banner for program listing identification.) The network previously produced three-to-five-minute-long feature segments that aired during longer-duration between-program promotional breaks, HBO News (1988–2011; formerly titled HBO Entertainment News from 1988 to 2007) and HBO Behind
7020-492: The United States Department of Justice on February 9. On March 11, 2022, the merger was approved by Discovery's shareholders. Due to the structure of the merger, it did not require separate approval from AT&T shareholders. In an SEC filing on March 25, 2022, AT&T stated that two-way trading of WBD stock with that of AT&T would begin on April 4, 2022, and that a special dividend would be issued
7176-727: The difference in local airtimes for a particular movie or program between two geographic locations being three hours at most; the opposite-region feed (i.e., the Pacific Time feeds in the Eastern and Central Time Zones, and the Eastern Time feeds in the Pacific, Mountain and Alaska Time Zones ) serves as a timeshift channel , allowing viewers who may have missed a particular program at its original local airtime to watch it three hours after its initial airing or allowing them to watch
7332-431: The free preview concept—now a standard promotional tool in the pay television industry—in 1973, as a marketing strategy allowing participating television providers to offer a sampling of HBO's programming for potential subscribers of the service. Cable providers were permitted to offer the unscrambled HBO content—aired for a single evening or, beginning in 1981 at the network level (as early as 1978 on some providers), over
7488-431: The major Hollywood film studios and live sporting events, all presented without interruptions by advertising and sold for a flat monthly fee to prospective subscribers. On November 2, 1971, Time Inc.'s board of directors approved the "Green Channel" proposal, agreeing to give Dolan a $ 150,000 development grant for the project. Time-Life and Sterling Communications soon proposed for the " Sterling Cable Network " to be
7644-670: The "HBO2" moniker in September 2002. The "HBO Plus" brand—modified in 2019 to "HBO+"—remains in use on a multiplex channel of HBO Latin America featuring mainly theatrical movies previously carried on its parent feed; HBO Latin America also operates a separate channel sharing the "HBO2" name with the shared U.S. namesake of both services.) On May 6, 1999, the HBO multiplex expanded to include two new thematic channels: HBO Comedy—featuring comedic feature films, comedy series from HBO's original programming library, and recent and archived HBO comedy specials—and HBO Zone—aimed at young adults between
7800-513: The "Saturday Night Guarantee" to denote a promise of "a new movie [premiering] every Saturday night" all 52 weeks of the year. (HBO had highlighted said "guarantee" in promotions for the Saturday premiere night dating to January 1994.) Before settling on having Saturday serve as its anchor premiere night, the scheduling of HBO's prime-time film premieres varied between Saturday, Sunday, and Wednesday, depending on competition from broadcast fare during
7956-807: The 1990s. (Outside of HBO Family, which regularly airs archived family-oriented series and specials, airings of older original programs may vary based on the channel's daily schedule.) Beginning with its programming expansion to afternoons in 1974, the primary HBO channel had imposed a longstanding watershed policy prohibiting films assigned an "R" rating from being broadcast before 8:00 p.m. ET/PT. (At various points, HBO also prohibited showings of X-/NC-17-rated and foreign art films .) The policy—which extended to films shown between 6:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. ET/PT, when HBO began offering 24-hour programming on weekends in September 1981—may have once stemmed from HBO's pre-mid-2000s availability on analog cable tiers (whereas its multiplex channels generally require
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#17327801270248112-539: The 2008 rollout of HD simulcasts for the HBO multiplex feeds until the mid-2010s, the majority of pay television providers that carried HBO HD generally offered only the main channel in high definition, with HD carriage of the multiplex channels varying by market. As of 2020 , most providers transmit all seven HBO multiplex channels in HD, either on a dedicated HD channel tier separate from their SD assignments or as hybrid SD/HD feeds. Home Box Office, Inc. announced plans to launch
8268-449: The 2025–26 season, ending a nearly 36-year association between the NBA and TNT. WBD had attempted to invoke a condition in its contract allowing it to match offers made by competitors (with the company, in particular, targeting the package sold to Amazon), but the league argued that it did not sufficiently match Amazon's offer. WBD threatened to take legal action over the agreement, claiming that
8424-448: The 35.8 million subscribers that HBO had at the time.) In addition to its U.S. subscriber base, HBO distributes its programming content in at least 151 countries worldwide too, as of 2018 , an estimated 140 million cumulative subscribers. Cable television executive Charles Dolan —through his company, Sterling Information Services—founded Manhattan Cable TV Services (renamed Sterling Manhattan Cable Television in January 1971),
8580-552: The City Mouse Adventures . Beginning in 2001, most of the family- or kid-oriented programs had migrated to HBO Family, with only a limited amount of newer family-oriented series being produced for either the primary channel or HBO Family since. (HBO Family continued to maintain a limited slate of original children's programming until 2003.) HBO ventured back into children's programming with its acquisition of first-run broadcast and streaming rights to Sesame Street ,
8736-904: The Dragon , The Last of Us , and True Detective ; comedies such as Curb Your Enthusiasm and The Righteous Gemstones ; and topical satires Last Week Tonight with John Oliver and Real Time with Bill Maher ). In addition, HBO also carries documentary films (mainly produced through its in-house production unit HBO Documentary Films), sports-focused documentary and magazine series (produced through its HBO Sports production unit), occasional original made-for-TV movies, occasional original concert and stand-up comedy specials, and short-form behind-the-scenes specials centered mainly on theatrical films (either running in their initial theatrical or HBO/Cinemax broadcast window). Newer episodes of most HBO original programs usually air over its main channel after 9:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific Time; depending partly on
8892-577: The Magnolia Network occurred on January 5, 2022. In April 2022, Discovery Inc. merged with WarnerMedia to form Warner Bros. Discovery . On April 7, 2022, it was reported that after the completion of the merger, Magnolia Network leadership would report to HBO and HBO Max 's chief content officer Casey Bloys rather than directly to Zaslav, nor Kathleen Finch (who previously oversaw Discovery's lifestyle brands, and now oversees most of Warner Bros. Discovery's U.S. cable networks); Deadline suggested
9048-463: The Max streaming app, but are available via its a la carte add-ons sold through Prime Video Channels , YouTube Primetime Channels and virtual pay television providers Hulu and YouTube TV (both of which sell their HBO/Max add-ons independently of their respective live TV tiers). As of September 2018 , HBO's programming was available to approximately 35.656 million U.S. households that had
9204-551: The NBA had "grossly misinterpreted our contractual rights". In August 2024, WBD reported that it had lost $ 10 billion in the second quarter of 2024, relating to continued losses from its direct-to-consumer segment and the devaluation of its linear TV assets. In November 2024, WBD agreed to a legal settlement with the NBA. The settlement included access to NBA highlights at no additional cost for Bleacher Report and House of Highlights and allowed for WBD, under its TNT Sports division, to continue operating NBA TV and NBA.com for
9360-459: The NBA. The agreement also included live game rights for select international territories, but none domestically. In a separate agreement with Disney , WBD agreed to sublicense its NBA studio show Inside the NBA to ESPN and ABC in exchange for ESPN sublicensing Big 12 college football and basketball games to TNT Sports. Warner Bros. Discovery consists of eight primary business divisions: HBO Home Box Office ( HBO )
9516-502: The Saturday 8:00 slot has been occupied by premieres of original specials and documentaries (scheduled at least once per month) and, since late December 2020, airings of older hit movies (mainly films released between 1979 and 2015) distributed under library content deals during gap weeks in the monthly premiere schedule. As of 2024, HBO and sister channel Cinemax (as well as their associated streaming platforms) maintain exclusive licensing agreements to first-run and library film content from
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#17327801270249672-626: The Scenes (1982–1992). The interstitials—particularly those aired as episodes of First Look —have also frequently been included as bonus features on DVD and Blu-ray releases of the profiled films. Since 2011, HBO no longer airs "behind-the-scenes" interstitials during promotional breaks, and has reduced airings of First Look to a few episodes per year as the network has honed its focus on higher-profile original programs and studios have increasingly limited their self-produced "making of" featurettes for exclusive physical and digital media release. During
9828-570: The Time Warner name in 2003. Time Warner spun off its cable division (later known as Spectrum owned by Charter Communications ) and AOL (now owned by Yahoo! Inc. ) in 2009 and Time Inc. was spun out in 2013, which was later acquired by Meredith Corporation and is now known as Dotdash Meredith . In 2018, Discovery Communications and AT&T acquired Scripps Networks Interactive and Time Warner, and were renamed to Discovery, Inc. and WarnerMedia respectively. In 2019, AT&T dissolved
9984-522: The Turner Broadcasting System as part of its reorganization of its media assets. On May 16, 2021, Bloomberg News reported that AT&T was considering an offer to divest equity interest in their media subsidiary WarnerMedia (the former Time Warner, which AT&T acquired in 2018 for just over $ 85 billion in an attempt to become a vertically integrated media conglomerate ), and have it merge with Discovery, Inc. to form
10140-412: The ages of 18 and 34, offering theatrical movies; comedy and alternative series, and documentaries from HBO's original programming library; and music videos. Rounding out the HBO multiplex expansion was HBO Latino, a Spanish language network launched on November 1, 2000, featuring a mix of dubbed simulcasts of programming from the primary HBO channel as well as exclusive Spanish-originated programs. HBO
10296-417: The auspices of Investigation Discovery and abandoning its remaining original live news programming. In January 2023, WBD announced licensing agreements with the free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) services The Roku Channel and Fox Corporation 's Tubi , featuring library content from Discovery, TLC, HGTV, Food Network, Warner Bros. Pictures, Warner Bros. Television, and HBO (including some of
10452-592: The cable channel TNT. References [ edit ] [REDACTED] Index of articles associated with the same name This set index article includes a list of related items that share the same name (or similar names). If an internal link incorrectly led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=TNT_Sports&oldid=1252374443 " Categories : Set index articles TNT Sports Hidden categories: Articles with short description Short description
10608-483: The change of plans during an earnings call, saying that Discovery+ has "profitable subscribers that are very happy with the product offering". In early-June 2023, Chris Licht was fired from CNN. On June 20, 2023, WBD underwent a round of layoffs affecting around 100 employees in the U.S. Networks division, most notably including multiple Turner Classic Movies (TCM) executives such as Pola Changnon (who had been with Turner for over 25 years). WBD announced plans to place
10764-556: The channel under Cartoon Network head Michael Ouweleen . It was also reported that WBD was preparing a deal to sell half of the published music catalog of Warner Bros. Entertainment (which consists primarily of music composed for its films and TV series, and is currently being administered by Universal Music Publishing Group ) for around $ 500 million. Amid concerns over the future of TCM, Martin Scorsese , Steven Spielberg , and Paul Thomas Anderson met with Zaslav, and on June 23 it
10920-418: The channel's schedule. Around this time, Cinemax also began airing adult-oriented softcore pornographic films and series —containing strong sexual content and nudity—in varying late-night timeslots (usually no earlier than 11:30 p.m. Eastern and Pacific); this programming block, originally airing under the "Friday After Dark" banner (renamed "Max After Dark" in 2008 to better reflect its prior expansion to
11076-456: The channel, which also gained exclusive streaming rights to the company's programming library for HBO Go and HBO Now (assuming those rights from Amazon Video , Netflix and Sesame Workshop's in-house subscription streaming service, Sesame Go, the latter of which will cease to operate as a standalone offering). With the debut of HBO Max in May 2020, under contract renewal terms agreed upon between
11232-520: The company aimed to be the "most innovative, exciting and fun place to tell stories in the world", and would combine Warner Bros.' "fabled hundred-year legacy of creative, authentic storytelling and taking bold risks to bring the most amazing stories to life" with Discovery's "integrity, innovation and inspiration." In an SEC Filing on November 18, 2021, Discovery revealed that talks with AT&T had fallen through, in April 2021, due to disagreements over
11388-484: The company made a number of further acquisitions. In 1979, Warner Communications formed a joint venture with credit card company American Express called Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment . American Express acquired a 50% stake in Warner Communications' cable television holdings for $ 175 million. This company owned such cable channels as MTV , Nickelodeon , The Movie Channel , and VH1 (which
11544-410: The company's top executive roles are filled by their Discovery counterparts, including Gunnar Wiedenfels as Warner Bros. Discovery's chief financial officer (CFO), JB Perrette as president and CEO of global streaming and interactive, and Discovery's chief lifestyle brands officer Kathleen Finch —whose role has been expanded to cover most of the combined company's U.S. linear networks, besides CNN (which
11700-402: The completion of the merger; the new leadership considered it to be incompatible with their goal of a unified streaming service for all WBD properties. In an investors' call on April 26 (concurrent with the first quarter earnings reports for Discovery Inc., its last prior to the merger), Zaslav contrasted the company's streaming businesses with those of Netflix (whose stock saw a decline after
11856-444: The consolidation of Cartoon Network Studios ' and Warner Bros. Animation 's development and production teams (with the two studios remaining separate labels with their own distinct output). On October 3, 2022, Nexstar closed its deal to acquire a controlling interest in The CW. Mark Pedowitz resigned from his position as the network's chairman and CEO, with Dennis Miller stepping in as the president of The CW. In October 2022, it
12012-459: The content featured in original programs shown on HBO and other premium services, with relatively limited advertiser issues.) Mainly because it is not beholden to the preferences of advertisers, HBO has long been regarded in the entertainment industry for letting program creators maintain full creative autonomy over their projects, allowing them to depict gritty subject matter that—before basic cable channels and streaming services deciding to follow
12168-503: The contractual period). Feature films from the aforementioned studios that maintain joint licensing contracts encompassing both services will typically make their premium television debut on HBO approximately two to three months before their premiere on Cinemax and vice versa. HBO's relationship with Warner Bros. began with a five-year distribution agreement signed in June 1986, encompassing films released between January 1987 and December 1992;
12324-431: The day's programming schedule, repeats of original series, made-for-cable movies, and documentaries (typically excluding programs with graphic violent or sexual content) are shown during the daytime hours on the main channel, and at various times on HBO's themed channels. Four of the themed multiplex channels—HBO Signature, HBO Family, HBO Comedy, and HBO Zone—also each carry archived HBO original series and specials dating to
12480-629: The daytime on Saturdays and Sundays; in January 2012, HBO began offering occasional Sunday daytime airings of R-rated films within its weekly encore showing of the Saturday movie premiere (airing as early as 4:00 p.m. ET/PT, depending on the previous night's scheduled premiere film, that film's length, and the Sunday night block of HBO original series that usually follows the rebroadcast); by 2017, afternoon R-rated movie airings (which occasionally have been shown as early as 2:00 p.m. ET/PT since then) were permitted in random afternoon timeslots any day of
12636-501: The deal due to cutbacks resulting from declines in public and private donations, distribution fees paid by PBS member stations, and licensing for merchandise sales. Through the agreement, HBO obtained first-run television rights to Sesame Street , beginning with the January 2016 debut of its 46th season (with episodes being distributed to PBS, following a nine-month exclusivity window at no charge to its member stations); Sesame Workshop also produced original children's programming content for
12792-489: The divestment. The merger was expected to be completed in mid-2022. The new company would be led by Discovery's current CEO, David Zaslav ; WarnerMedia's CEO Jason Kilar 's position in the new company was uncertain. Zaslav stated that the two companies would spend a combined US$ 20 billion annually on content (outpacing even Netflix ). The company will aim to expand their streaming services, which includes WarnerMedia's Max , to reach 400 million global subscribers. It
12948-417: The early 2000s, as the respective multiplex channels were being packaged in each tier mandatorily. In February 1996, in anticipation of the adoption of MPEG-2 digital compression codecs that would allow cable providers to offer digital cable service, Home Box Office, Inc. announced plans to expand its multiplex services across HBO and Cinemax to twelve channels (counting time zone -based feeds), encompassing
13104-479: The estimated cost of the initial pay-cable rights was between $ 300 million and $ 600 million, depending on the overall performance of Warner's films and HBO/Cinemax's respective subscriber counts. Although the Warner deal was initially non-exclusive, a preemptive strategy if its co-owned rivals Showtime and The Movie Channel (which elected not to pick up any spare Warner titles) sought full exclusivity over movie rights,
13260-557: The female-targeted WMax in May 2001); Cinemáx (a Spanish language simulcast feed, which originally launched as the young adult-focused @Max in 2001), 5StarMax (launched in May 2001) and OuterMax (launched in May 2001). Magnolia Network is an American multinational basic cable network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery and Chip and Joanna Gaines , formerly known as DIY Network. In April 2019, Discovery officially announced its new venture, and that its linear television component would launch sometime in 2020, replacing DIY Network, though it
13416-411: The first SVOD service to be offered by an American premium service, launched on July 1, 2001, over then sister company Time Warner Cable's Columbia, South Carolina , system. The service was developed to allow HBO subscribers access to the channel's programming at their choosing, thereby reducing the frequency in which viewers were unable to find a program they prefer to watch and limiting cancellations to
13572-485: The first sub-feeds ever offered by a subscription television service to specifically serve that time zone.) Home Box Office, Inc. began marketing the HBO channel suite and related coastal feeds under the umbrella brand "MultiChannel HBO" in September 1994; the package was rebranded as "HBO The Works", now exclusively classified to the four HBO multiplex channels (and later applied to the three thematic channels that were launched afterward), in April 1998. (The Cinemax tier
13728-563: The flagship Warner Bros. film and television studios, comic book publisher DC Comics , Home Box Office, Inc. (including HBO , Cinemax and Magnolia Network ), U.S. Networks Group (including the majority of the advertisement-supported cable channels of its predecessors, namely Discovery, Scripps Networks , Turner Broadcasting , and Warner), CNN Worldwide (which includes CNN and CNN International ), TNT Sports (including Motor Trend Group , TNT Sports UK , and Eurosport ), Global Streaming & Interactive Entertainment (which includes
13884-1563: The following studios and their related subsidiaries: HBO also maintains sub-run agreements—covering television and streaming licensing of films that have previously received broadcast or syndicated television airings—for theatrical films distributed by Paramount Pictures (including content from subsidiaries or acquired library partners Miramax , Carolco Pictures , MTV Films , Nickelodeon Movies and Republic Pictures , all for films released prior to 2013), Universal Pictures (including content from subsidiaries Universal Animation Studios , DreamWorks Animation , Working Title Films , Illumination , and Focus Features , all for films released prior to 2022), Summit Entertainment (for films released prior to 2023), Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures (including content from Walt Disney Pictures , 20th Century Studios , and Searchlight Pictures (except films co-produced by Pixar ), and former subsidiaries Touchstone Pictures , and Hollywood Pictures , all for films released prior to 2023), Sony Pictures Entertainment (including content from subsidiaries/library partners Columbia Pictures , Sony Pictures Classics , ELP Communications , Morgan Creek Entertainment , Screen Gems , Revolution Studios , and former HBO sister company TriStar Pictures ), and Amazon MGM Studios (including content from subsidiaries Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer , Orion Pictures , United Artists , and former subsidiaries The Cannon Group , and The Samuel Goldwyn Company ). HBO also produces made-for-cable television movies through
14040-543: The format. For the first 23 months of its existence, the HD feed only transmitted theatrical films from the network's programming suppliers (initially accounting for about 45% of its available feature film output, expanding to around 60% by early 2001) and HBO's in-house original movies in the format, as existing widescreen prints of those films were already scalable in the 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio and could readily be upconverted to HD resolution. Original programming began to be made available in HD on January 14, 2001, when
14196-497: The genre across Home Box Office, Inc.'s platforms. In terms of mainstream programming, Cinemax began premiering original action series in the early 2010s, beginning with the August 2011 debut of Strike Back (which has since become the channel's longest-running original program). As a consequence of WarnerMedia reallocating its programming resources toward the HBO Max streaming service, Cinemax eliminated scripted programming after
14352-671: The initial airdate and usually uploaded at the normal airtime, of their original broadcast on the main linear HBO channel. By February 2019, subscribership of HBO Now subscribers had reached over 8 million customers. On June 12, 2020, WarnerMedia announced that HBO Now would be rebranded solely as HBO on August 1. Following HBO Max's launch, the HBO streaming service had served as the network's default OTT platform for Roku customers, as WarnerMedia has not yet signed deals to distribute HBO Max on that platform; until its replacement by HBO Max on those platforms in November 2020, it also served as
14508-474: The last of its remaining slate of action series ended in early 2021, shifting the channel back to its original structure as a movie-exclusive premium service. The linear Cinemax multiplex service, as of 2021 , consists of the primary feed and seven thematic channels: MoreMax (launched in April 1991 as Cinemax 2, in conjunction with HBO2's rollout); ActionMax (originally launched as Cinemax 3 in 1995); ThrillerMax (launched in 1998); MovieMax (originally launched as
14664-456: The logo. TNT Sports is brand name for sports television channels and broadcast divisions owned and operated by Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD). The brand was first used as the sports broadcast division of the American cable television channel TNT . Channels and divisions [ edit ] TNT Sports (Argentine TV channel) , the sports channel in Argentina. TNT Sports (Brazil) ,
14820-461: The merger was expected to close sometime during the second quarter of 2022. On February 1, 2022, it was reported that AT&T had finalized the structure of the merger: WarnerMedia would be spun off pro rata to AT&T's shareholders, and then merge into Discovery Inc. to form the new company. The transaction was approved by the Brazilian antitrust regulator Cade on February 7, followed by
14976-526: The mob drama, " Mr. Ruggerio's Neighborhood ", on March 4 was the first first-run episode of an HBO series to be transmitted in high-definition from its initial telecast, with all subsequent episodes being delivered to HBO exclusively on HD videotape (and downconverted for the main standard-definition feed). Bob Zitter, then the network's Senior Vice President of Technology Operations, disclosed to Multichannel News in January 2001 that HBO elected to delay offering its original series in high definition until there
15132-548: The model set by HBO and other pay cable services—had not usually been shown on other television platforms. During the "Executive Actions" symposium held by The Washington Post and George Washington University in April 2015 (shortly after the launch of the HBO Now streaming service), then-HBO CEO Richard Plepler said that he does not want the network to be akin to Netflix in which users " binge watch " its television shows and film content, saying "I don't think it would have been
15288-735: The modern day, HBO has been the first promoter of movies like the Saving Private Ryan , Fight Club , Antz , American Beauty , the Spider-Man franchise (2002 - 2007) by Sam Raimi , Bruce Almighty , Minority Report , Dreamcatcher , Madagascar , War of the Worlds , Monuments Men , among others. Depending on the service provider, HBO provides up to seven 24-hour multiplex channels—all of which are simulcast in both standard definition and high definition , and available as time zone-based regional feeds—as well as
15444-478: The movie would air exclusively during the designated watershed period (“Home Box Office/HBO will show this feature only at night"). The watershed policy was extended to cover TV-MA-rated programs when the TV Parental Guidelines were implemented industry-wide on January 1, 1997, although HBO had already been withholding airing original programs incorporating mature content that would now qualify for
15600-530: The movie—such as boxing coverage or concerts—have caused rare variances in the preceding film's start time; if a live event was scheduled, before the December 2018 discontinuation of HBO's boxing telecasts, the premiered film would air after the event—in reverse order from the Eastern feed scheduling—on the Pacific Time Zone feed.) From June 1996 until September 2006, the presentations were marketed as
15756-732: The name of the new service. Discussions to change the service's name took place during a later meeting of Dolan and the executive staff he hired to assist in developing the project, who ultimately settled on calling it " H ome B ox O ffice ", which was meant to convey to potential customers that the service would be their " ticket " to movies and events that they could see in their own home. Home Box Office launched at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time on November 8, 1972, initially available to subscribers of Teleservice Cable (now Service Electric Cable TV and Communications ) in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania . HBO's inaugural program and event telecast,
15912-422: The network (including weekly series, documentaries, sports magazine and documentary programs, and concert and stand-up comedy specials). The service's rotating program selection incorporates newer film titles and episodes that are added to the platform following their debut on the linear feed, as well as library content (including complete seasons of the network's past and present original programs). HBO on Demand,
16068-401: The network commenced a 13-week Sunday "encore" presentation of the second season of The Sopranos in remastered 1080i HD. (HBO had been requiring the producers of its original series to film their episodes in widescreen—subsequently downconverted for the standard definition feed—to fit 4:3 television screens since 1996, to future-proof them for remastering in HD.) The third-season premiere of
16224-519: The network's early years, HBO aired other interstitials in-between programs. Originally billed as Something Short and Special , around 1980, InterMissions (as the interstitials were begun to be called in September 1978) was bannered into two groupings: Video Jukebox , a showcase of music videos from various artists (eventually separated from the other intermission shorts and given various long-form spinoffs, also titled as Video Jukebox or variants thereof), and Special , showcasing short films. By 1984,
16380-440: The network's pay television contractual windows for recent studio releases and from library content agreements with film distributors) and HBO original programming (including scripted series, made-for-cable movies, comedy specials, documentaries, and sports documentary and magazine programs). HBO Go, along with companion service HBO Now and HBO Max, did not provide live simulcasts of the seven linear HBO channels. (HBO and Cinemax are
16536-712: The next day to give AT&T shareholders a 0.24 share in WBD for each share of AT&T common stock they hold. The merger was officially completed on April 8, 2022, with trading beginning on the Nasdaq on April 11. At this time the company unveiled its final logo, designed by Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv , which features a rendition of Warner Bros.' long-time shield logo. The combined company retained several top executives from WarnerMedia, including film and television heads Toby Emmerich and Channing Dungey , and HBO and HBO Max chief content officer (CCO) Casey Bloys. Most of
16692-430: The northern Mid-Atlantic and southern New England , into a national television network—in September 1975, and, alongside sister channel Cinemax , was among the first two American pay television services to offer complimentary multiplexed channels in August 1991. The network operates seven 24-hour, linear multiplex channels as well as a traditional subscription video on demand platform (HBO On Demand) and its content
16848-470: The number of HBO Max subscribers by at least 10 million by counting inactivated subscriptions bundled with AT&T services—thus misleading investors in violation of the Securities Act . It also alleged that Discovery executives failed to warn investors that WarnerMedia's prospectus contained misleading statements. On September 28 during a company town hall, Zaslav addressed speculation that WBD
17004-412: The on-demand streaming service was conceived as a TV Everywhere platform marketed exclusively to existing subscribers of the linear HBO television service. (The HBO Go website and mobile apps, including its apps for streaming devices such as Roku and Apple TV, and some video game consoles , required a password accompanying a linear HBO subscription by a participating television provider to access content on
17160-551: The only American premium television services not to include live network feeds in their proprietary streaming VOD platforms.) Based on the prototype HBO on Broadband service that was originally launched in January 2008 to linear HBO subscribers of Time Warner Cable's Green Bay and Milwaukee, Wisconsin , systems, HBO Go launched nationwide on February 18, 2010, initially available to existing HBO subscribers signed with Verizon FiOS . Initially carrying 1,000 hours of program content available for streaming in standard or high definition,
17316-573: The other five multiplex channels is limited to subscribers of DirecTV , YouTube TV and the Hulu live TV service.) HBO maintains a separate feed for the Hawaii–Aleutian Time Zone —the only American cable-originated television network to offer a timeshift feed for Hawaii viewers—operating a three-hour-delayed version of the primary channel's Pacific Time feed for subscribers of Oceanic Spectrum , which otherwise transmits Pacific Time feeds for
17472-416: The overnight/early morning hours on its primary and select multiplex channels, in addition to being available on demand via HBO's various streaming and television VOD platforms (including its dedicated portal on HBO Max). HBO innovated original entertainment programming for cable television networks, in which a television series (both dramatic and comedic), made-for-television movie, or entertainment special
17628-437: The ownership of the new company between AT&T and Discovery shareholders, and the amount of debt transferred to Discovery when they merged with WarnerMedia, before talks resumed on May 17, 2021. In November 2021, during an earnings call, Discovery Streaming CEO JB Perrette discussed possible options for its Discovery+ streaming service post-merger, including bundling the service with HBO Max and eventually merging them under
17784-456: The partnership." As the transaction did not need any regulatory approval (unlike the "Big Four" networks , The CW does not own any of its stations), Nexstar immediately took over the network's operations. In September 2022, WBD became the subject of a proposed class-action lawsuit by one of its shareholders, alleging that WarnerMedia was overinvesting in streaming content "without sufficient concern for return on investments", and had overstated
17940-720: The planned merger of Discovery+ and HBO Max would occur by summer 2023 in the United States, with other markets to follow. HBO subsequently faced a reorganization on August 15 to dismantle most of HBO Max's autonomous units, with HBO Max's head of comedy Suzanna Makkos now reporting to HBO's head of comedy Amy Gravitt, and layoffs within HBO Max's non-scripted, live-action family entertainment, international originals, and casting units, as well as HBO's acquisitions unit. HBO Max also continued to remove and cancel some of its lesser-viewed original programming, particularly family-oriented and animated series. On August 15, 2022, Nexstar confirmed to another report by WSJ in June that it would buy
18096-497: The possibility that Magnolia Network could contribute content (such as library programs or original series) to HBO Max—noting that some of the service's scripted series have appealed to a similar adult female demographic to Magnolia Network, HBO Max's own forays into unscripted content , and reports that the Gaines had shown interest in working on scripted projects. HBO HD (originally called HBO HDTV from March 1999 until April 2006)
18252-399: The preview event—usually following the headlining prime time film—that previewed upcoming HBO programming for prospective and existing subscribers. HBO offers between three and five preview events each year—normally scheduled to coincide with the premiere of a new or returning original series, and in the past, a high-profile special or feature film—to pay television providers for distribution on
18408-426: The production of direct-to-streaming films for HBO Max—with Zaslav arguing that they lacked economic value and impact in comparison to theatrical releases. WBD renewed its contracts with Bloys and other key HBO executives, with Zaslav praising his performance as chief content officer. Zaslav stated that a "10-year plan" was in development for DC Films, modeled after those of Marvel Studios , while Perrette stated that
18564-470: The programming choices that would be provided to subscribers of the channel tier to that offered by multi-screen movie theaters ), each available at no extra charge to subscribers of one or both networks. (The three prior premium services that HBO launched between 1979 and 1987, Cinemax and the now-defunct Take 2 and Festival, were developed as standalone services that could be purchased separately from and optionally packaged with HBO.) On August 1, 1991, through
18720-402: The projects (almost universally by studios maintaining exclusive pay television contracts with HBO and Cinemax, and which have been rebroadcast on the former during a film's pay-cable distribution window), and have usually consisted of either interstitial "behind-the-scenes" and interview segments on an upcoming/recent theatrical release or red carpet coverage. Currently, these segments air under
18876-591: The provider's YouView set-top boxes via a standalone VOD subscription. HBO Go is an international TV Everywhere streaming service for broadband subscribers of the linear HBO television service. It was accessible through play.hbogo.com, and through apps for Apple iOS and Apple TV devices; Android devices and Android TV ; Amazon Fire TV ; Chromecast ; PlayStation consoles ( PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 ); Xbox One consoles; Roku devices; and most Samsung Smart TV models. Content available on HBO Go included theatrically released films (sourced from
19032-448: The quiet removals of multiple HBO Max original films from the platform and its upcoming releases. In the second quarter of 2022, WBD took $ 9.8 billion in revenue and a net loss of $ 2.2 billion pro forma , primarily from integration and restructuring expenses. The company took $ 825 million in write-offs on "content impairments and development". The company confirmed cuts to children's programming development, and abandoned
19188-418: The risk of them pulling or refusing to sell their advertising depending on the objectionable material that a sponsor is comfortable placing their advertising. (Incidentally, since the early 2000s, some ad-supported basic cable channels—like FX and Comedy Central —have incorporated stronger profanity, somewhat more pervasive violence and sexual themes, and occasional nudity in their original programs, similar to
19344-463: The series that were pulled from HBO Max earlier). On February 8, 2023, The Wall Street Journal reported that WBD had amended its plans to merge Discovery+ with HBO Max, with HBO Max's successor slated to include "most" Discovery content, and Discovery+ remaining operational to retain its subscriber base, and provide an alternative option for customers not interested in the higher-priced unified service. On February 24, WBD CEO David Zaslav confirmed
19500-445: The service and its upcoming programs to prospective subscribers aired alongside on-air promotions between programs during the preview weekend, although interstitials produced in-house or by third-party producers were inserted by some providers over the HBO feed during promo breaks for their local or regional audience; from September 1988 to September 1994, the network also aired a 15-minute-long promotional "free preview show" each night of
19656-485: The service because of that issue. On January 3, 2011, HBO became the first pay television network to offer VOD content in 3D ; initially available to linear HBO subscribers signed with Time Warner Cable, Comcast, and Verizon FiOS, 3D content consisted of theatrical feature films available in the format. In the United Kingdom, a domestic version of HBO on Demand was launched in 2015 to subscribers of IPTV provider TalkTalk TV , which provides HBO's program offerings through
19812-496: The service.) On June 12, 2020, WarnerMedia announced that HBO Go's mobile and digital media player apps would be discontinued in the U.S. on July 31, as most traditional and virtual MVPDs have secured distribution deals for HBO Max. Those providers that have not yet made an HBO Max deal continue to allow customer access to HBO Go (mainly Altice USA 's brands, Mediacom , smaller cable providers, and closed-circuit university television systems which had not had personnel available during
19968-533: The short segments had mainly been limited to comedic film shorts (originally branded as HBO Comedy Shorts and then as HBO Short Takes , which used a set of differing animated intros) and youth-targeted live action and animated short films seen largely before and during family-oriented programming (branded as HBO Shorts for Kids ). Intermission shorts had largely vanished from the channel by 1988. Since 2014, HBO has occasionally aired short films ranging between 15 and 25 minutes in length at varying times each week during
20124-701: The six other HBO multiplex channels. (The state's other major cable provider, Hawaiian Telcom , offers the Pacific Time Zone feed of all seven channels.) Cinemax is an American pay television network owned by the Home Box Office, Inc. subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. Originally developed as a companion service to HBO, the channel's programming consists of recent and some older theatrically released feature films, original action drama series, documentaries, and special behind-the-scenes featurettes. While Cinemax and HBO operate as separate premium services, their respective channel tiers are very frequently sold as
20280-601: The sports broadcast division for WBD's channels and networks in Brazil. TNT Sports (Chilean TV channel) , the sports channel in Chile. TNT Sports (Mexico) , the sports channel in Mexico. TNT Sports (United Kingdom) , the group of sports channels in the United Kingdom and Ireland. TNT Sports (United States) , the sports broadcast division for WBD's channels and networks in the United States, including its original namesake,
20436-781: The studio and WarnerMedia in October 2019, Sesame Street and other Sesame Workshop content will shift from the linear television service to the streaming-based HBO Max later in the year. On average, movies occupy between 14 and 18 hours of the daily schedule on HBO and HBO2 (or as little as 12 hours on the latter, depending upon if HBO2 is scheduled to carry an extended "catch-up" marathon of an HBO original series), and up to 20 hours per day—depending on channel format—on its five thematic multiplex channels. Since June 6, 1992, HBO has offered weekly pay television premieres of recent theatrical and original made-for-cable movies on Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT. (Event presentations that have followed
20592-442: The studio. Gunn will oversee creative development on DC projects, while Safran will oversee the business aspect. During an earnings report in November 2022, it was announced that the launch of WBD's streaming service had been moved up to spring 2023. Max was unveiled April 12, 2023. In December 2022, CNN announced cutbacks and a reorganization to prioritize its "core" operations, resulting in sister channel HLN being brought under
20748-560: The studios under the Kids, Young Adults and Classics division ( Warner Bros. Animation , Cartoon Network Studios and Williams Street ) was moved under Warner Bros. Television . The same day, it announced an agreement with British telecom company BT Group for it to contribute its BT Sport channels into a 50/50 joint venture with its UK Eurosport channels, and eventually merge them. On June 1, 2022, Warner Bros. Pictures head Toby Emmerich announced that he would step down and establish
20904-531: The summer of 1971, while on a family vacation to France aboard the Queen Elizabeth 2 , a desperate Dolan—wanting to help Sterling Manhattan turn profitable and to prevent Time-Life, Inc. (then the book publishing unit of Time Inc. ) from pulling its investment in the system—developed a proposal for a cable-originated television channel. Codenamed " The Green Channel ", the conceptual subscription service would offer unedited theatrical movies licensed from
21060-440: The traditional network television season. First-run theatrical films debut on average from ten months to one year after a film's initial theatrical run has concluded, and no more than six months after their DVD or digital VOD download release. COVID-19 -related postponements of newer theatrical releases by its distribution partners caused HBO to reduce the frequency of scheduled theatrical premieres in September 2020; since then,
21216-472: The transaction was approved by the European Commission . On January 5, 2022, The Wall Street Journal reported that WarnerMedia and Paramount Global (at the time named ViacomCBS) were exploring a possible sale of either a majority stake or all of The CW , and that Nexstar Media Group was considered a leading bidder. The reports also indicated that WarnerMedia and ViacomCBS could include
21372-501: The unit and, since HBO became co-owned with the film division through the 1989 Time-Warner merger, distributed through Warner Bros. Entertainment. Films to which HBO maintains traditional telecast and streaming rights will usually also be shown on the Cinemax television and streaming platforms during their licensing agreement period (either after a film title completes its HBO window or transfers between services over certain months during
21528-459: The week on the main channel at the network's discretion. Most of the six HBO thematic multiplex channels—except for HBO Family, which prohibits programming containing either equivalent rating by the effect of the channel's target audience and format —air TV-MA and R-rated programming during morning and afternoon periods. HBO also does not typically allow most NC-17-rated films to be aired on the primary channel or its multiplex channels. HBO pioneered
21684-498: Was accordingly marketed as "MultiChannel Cinemax" and then "MultiMax" at the respective times.) Concurrent with the adoption of "The Works" package brand, two of the channels changed their names and formats: HBO2 was rebranded as HBO Plus, and HBO3 was relaunched as HBO Signature—incorporating content catering toward a female audience, alongside theatrical films aimed at broader audiences and content from HBO's original made-for-cable movie and documentary libraries. (HBO Plus would revert to
21840-452: Was announced that filmmaker James Gunn and producer Peter Safran would serve as the co-CEO and co-chairmen of DC Films which rebranded as DC Studios moving forward. The duo has signed a four-year deal that will oversee the production of films, television, and animation under the DC label. The pair will report directly to Zaslav, while also working alongside but independently with other members of
21996-667: Was announced that the channel would be placed under Warner Bros. Pictures Group heads Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy—who both affirmed the cultural significance of TCM and pledged to keep its programming "untouched and protected". In December 2023, Warner Bros. Discovery announced the purchase of Turkish streaming platform BluTV , with operations in the MENA region. On February 16, 2024, RedBird Capital Partners (via its United Arab Emirates -backed partnership RedBird IMI) announced its intent to acquire All3Media —a WBD joint venture with Liberty Global —for £1.15 billion. The acquisition
22152-640: Was both sustainable consumer penetration of high-definition television sets and wide accessibility of HDTV equipment on the retail market. Sports telecasts were upgraded to HD on September 25, 2004, with an HBO World Championship Boxing fight card headlined by Roy Jones Jr. and Glen Johnson . HD programming can also be broadcast in Dolby Digital 5.1 . The network began transmitting its six multiplex channels in high definition on September 1, 2008, when DirecTV began offering HD simulcast feeds of HBO2, HBO Family, HBO Signature, and HBO Latino. HBO on Demand
22308-489: Was completed on May 16, 2024. WBD had previously announced an intent to sell its stake in the company to British broadcaster ITV plc , but the company declined. In April 2024, Warner Bros. Discovery New Zealand announced that it would shut down its news department Newshub (which produced bulletins for its free-to-air channel Three ) in July 2024, citing declining local advertising revenue. Newshub would be supplanted by
22464-481: Was delayed until 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic impacting the ability to produce the network's launch programming and ending up launching several months before the closing of the Warner Bros. and Discovery Inc. merger. Due to the delay in production, some Magnolia Network programming debuted as part of the January 4, 2021, launch of the Discovery+ streaming service. The transition of the linear DIY Network to
22620-808: Was founded on April 4, 1923, by four brothers, Harry , Albert , Sam , and Jack Warner . The company established itself as a leader in the American film industry before diversifying into animation , television , and video games and is one of the "Big Five" American film studios , as well as a member of the Motion Picture Association (MPA). In 1965, Turner Broadcasting System was founded by Ted Turner and based in Atlanta , Georgia. A year later, Kinney National Company came into existence and its media division became Warner Communications before merging with Time Inc. in 1990 to become Time Warner. During its time as Warner Communications,
22776-408: Was founded, launching The Discovery Channel three years later and was renamed to Discovery Communications in 1994. Scripps Networks Interactive was founded in 2008 spun off from E. W. Scripps Company 's cable division. In 1996, Time Warner Entertainment acquired the Turner Broadcasting System; but the company later merged with America Online (AOL) to form AOL Time Warner in 2001 and reverted to
22932-409: Was initially available via Apple Inc. to Apple TV and iOS devices for a three-month exclusivity period following its formal launch, before becoming available for subscription through other participating Internet service providers . Available for $ 15 per month, HBO Now was identical to the former HBO Go in terms of content and features. New episodes of the HBO series were made available for streaming on
23088-431: Was launched in 1985 on the channel space left by Turner's Cable Music Channel ). Warner Communications bought out American Express's half in 1984 and sold the venture a year later to the original iteration of Viacom , which renamed it MTV Networks (now known as Paramount Media Networks). In 1982, Warner Communications purchased Popular Library from CBS Publications . Meanwhile in the same year, Cable Education Network
23244-423: Was marketed independent of a pay television subscription to the linear HBO service as a standalone platform targeting cord cutters . HBO Now was available online and as apps for Apple iOS and Apple TV devices; Android tablets, phones and Android TV devices; Amazon Fire TV; Roku devices; Xbox consoles ( Xbox 360 and Xbox One ); PlayStation consoles ( PlayStation 3 and later); and select TiVo devices; and as
23400-443: Was originally scheduled to launch a tertiary channel, Cinemax 3, on November 1, 1991, but these plans were shelved until 1996.) While most cable providers collectively offered the HBO and Cinemax multiplex channels in individual tiers, some providers had sold their secondary or tertiary channels as optional add-ons to expanded basic subscribers; this practice was discontinued when HBO and Cinemax began migrating to digital cable in
23556-439: Was pursuing a possible sale as early as 2024, stating that they were "absolutely not for sale", and "have everything we need to be successful." On October 11, Warner Bros. Television Group laid off 82 employees and eliminated 43 vacant positions as part of a restructuring that primarily impacts their unscripted and animation units. The restructuring saw the consolidation of Warner Horizon and Telepictures ' creative operations, and
23712-570: Was reported by the Financial Times that Zaslav and WBD executives had been discussing the possibility of breaking up the company, so that WBD's unprofitable linear television networks could be separated from the more profitable Warner Bros. studio business and Max. On July 24, 2024, the NBA officially announced new media rights agreements with Disney ( ESPN and ABC ), NBCUniversal ( NBC and Peacock ), and Amazon Prime Video beginning in
23868-490: Was scaled back to focus on independent film production in 1984. The current HBO Films unit was formed in October 1999 through the consolidation of HBO Pictures and HBO NYC Productions (created as HBO Showcase in 1986, and following its June 1996 restructuring, had also occasionally produced drama series for the network). Since 1984, HBO Films has also maintained an exclusive licensing agreement with HBO (later expanded to include Cinemax) for theatrical productions produced by
24024-444: Was stated that the company would aim to achieve $ 3 billion in cost savings via synergies within two years. On June 1, 2021, it was announced that the merged company would be known as Warner Bros. Discovery, and an interim wordmark was unveiled with the tagline "The stuff that dreams are made of"—a quote from the 1941 Warner Bros. film The Maltese Falcon , itself paraphrasing Shakespeare's The Tempest . Zaslav explained that
24180-616: Was taken over by Chris Licht , replacing the outgoing Jeff Zucker ), Magnolia Network (which reports to Bloys, after having previously reported directly to Zaslav under Discovery), and the Turner Sports unit (which would be overseen by the newly-formed Warner Bros. Discovery Sports division). In an introductory town hall featuring Oprah Winfrey as host, Zaslav stated that the combined company would need to have "one culture" that "starts with people feeling safe, people feeling valued for who they are", as opposed what he described as
24336-475: Was the conceptual blueprint for the "premium channel", pay television services sold to subscribers for an extra monthly fee that do not accept traditional advertising and present their programming without editing for objectionable material . It eventually became the first television channel in the world to begin transmitting via satellite—expanding the growing regional pay service, originally available to cable and multipoint distribution service (MDS) providers in
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