X

HBO Max to launch in first European countries Oct. 26

HBO Max's initial European rollout will start in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Spain and Andorra. It'll widen to Central Europe, Eastern Europe and Portugal next year.

Joan E. Solsman Former Senior Reporter
Joan E. Solsman was CNET's senior media reporter, covering the intersection of entertainment and technology. She's reported from locations spanning from Disneyland to Serbian refugee camps, and she previously wrote for Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal. She bikes to get almost everywhere and has been doored only once.
Expertise Streaming video, film, television and music; virtual, augmented and mixed reality; deep fakes and synthetic media; content moderation and misinformation online Credentials
  • Three Folio Eddie award wins: 2018 science & technology writing (Cartoon bunnies are hacking your brain), 2021 analysis (Deepfakes' election threat isn't what you'd think) and 2022 culture article (Apple's CODA Takes You Into an Inner World of Sign)
See full bio
Joan E. Solsman
2 min read
An executive stands on a stage with a huge screen showing the HBO Max logo behind him.

HBO Max streams everything on HBO's regular channel plus extra shows, movies and originals. 

 WarnerMedia

HBO Max will launch in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Spain and Andorra on Oct. 26, widening the streaming service into Europe after it launched in the US last year and then expanded into Latin America earlier this year. HBO Max -- which is owned WarnerMedia, for now a part of AT&T -- will move forward to Central Europe, Eastern Europe and Portugal next year. 

In the new territories, HBO Max will be available to new customers who may sign up directly for the service, as well as existing customers of HBO España, HBO Nordic and HBO Go, billed either directly or through eligible partners. 

After a bumpy launch a year ago, HBO Max has been hitting a stride this year. With more original programming coming online, and interest boosted in the US by an unprecedented number of theatrical movies from Warner Bros. streaming on HBO Max the same day they hit cinemas, HBO Max has also widened its accessibility by offering lower-priced tiers with ads or restrictions. But a spin-off megadeal -- selling off HBO Max and all AT&T's media operations and merging them with Discovery -- means the future shape of HBO Max after the deal closes could morph from what it is now. 

HBO Max launched as another splashy new service in the so-called streaming wars, a year-and-a-half period when media and technology giants rolled out their own, big-budget services to take on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and the like. Just like Disney Plus, Apple TV Plus and NBCUniversal's Peacock, HBO Max hopes its particular mix of shows, movies and originals will hook you on its vision for TV's future. But these corporate rivalries also affect how many services you must use -- and pay for -- to watch your favorite shows and movies online.

More streaming advice

Watch this: David Katzmaier's tips for upgrading your home entertainment during COVID-19

CNET TV Coverage

TV Types
TV Sizes
Streaming & TV Accessories
TV Information
TV & Streaming Coupons