HBO Max launched

[SUPERECWFAN1]

AT&T is a shoddy , **** ran company really at this stage. To sell a streaming service they are gonna sink billions of dollars in it instead of the strategy to build it up slowly. Disney is smart , they are losing money (reports are the losses have fallen in 2020 to $500+ million for Disney+ and they could fall further in 2021). We already saw the company scrambling in massive debt this year and they are gonna put themselves in more debt.

I don't expect AT&T to own the company by 2025. I'll say it here 1st ...WarnerMedia will be sold as another company buys them out.

[ComicJunkie21]

No clue what their overhead is but AT&T owns WB/HBO and are the big pushers for HBOMax and the company is worth 200 Billion so a few billion loss in the short run doesn't seem bad if they can make HBOMax a player in Streaming in the future.

I would have agreed with you IF ATT wasn't in so much debt already due to the WB and DirectTv acquisitions. Their current debt load is close to being equal to their worth. Since ATT is a publicly traded company taking on additional billions in debt will not look good for their stock and probably won't bold well with stockholders.

[Kirby101]

Yeah, no matter how big a company is, when they start going into the Red the stock suffers. And the only thing large companies care about is executive pay tied to stock prices.

[Comic-Reader Lad]

The only thing I care about HBO Max for is because they'll have DC originals on their streaming service.

That'll happen no matter who owns the company, and it'll probably be best if a different company bought WarnerMedia that would be a better fit, but which company could afford WarnerMedia? Maybe Apple? Rumor was they were going to buy Disney at one point. Apple would be a better fit than AT&T, I think.

Anyway, HBO Max will be good for DC Films because Warner Pictures typically allows their directors/creator more latitude than other companies -- particularly Disney. That could mean really great films or films that miss the mark -- DC Films has had both.

With HBO Max as an option, if a film turns out badly or doesn't test well, they could just throw it on HBO Max to mitigate the PR damage to the DC brand that already has had too many dings to its reputation over the last 7 years.

The only thing is, Walter Hamada will have to be tough with directors and tell them that a theatrical release isn't guaranteed. Lots of directors will balk, but there will be those that will play ball. I suspect Ava DuVernay's New Gods film, if it ever really gets made, would work better as an "HBO Max Original" than as a theatrical release -- streaming data is a lot more closely guarded than box office receipts, so if it tanks, it wouldn't be as public.

[green_garnish]

I would have agreed with you IF ATT wasn't in so much debt already due to the WB and DirectTv acquisitions. Their current debt load is close to being equal to their worth. Since ATT is a publicly traded company taking on additional billions in debt will not look good for their stock and probably won't bold well with stockholders.

I'm old enough to remember when similar things were said about Disney when they paid $70 million or something for Fox.

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[Kirby101]

of course next year it will all be different, so who knows what these services will look like then?

[Derek Metaltron]

Disney will always have the advantage whilst it is far more internationally available and will be getting a massive boost internationally via the Hulu and Fox content added via Star next month, plus the two big boys of Marvel and Star Wars. HBO controlled properties are pretty shaky outside maybe DC.

[Jim Kelly]

I think that American Telephone and T e l e g r a p h has loads of money and loads of resources. They aren't dependent on the entertainment business for their profits--that's their side hustle.

[ComicJunkie21]

I'm old enough to remember when similar things were said about Disney when they paid $70 million or something for Fox.

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There's a big difference in the two because of the amount of debt to worth ratio Disney has compared to ATT. Disney has about 64 billion in debt and is worth a bit more than ATT. ATT debt is closer to 164 billion which is a nice chunk considering they are worth about 200 billion. Also lets not forget both companies have cash on hand to technically reduce debt so Disney's debt could be closer to about 50 bullion while ATT is closer to 150 billion. ATT already had a decent amount of debt due to acquiring Direct tv a few years ago which is why their debt is so high, Disney didn't have much or any debt before the fox acquisition so the ROI was more favorable for them and risk was a bit lower due to the proven Marvel properties alone guaranteeing a few billion back by movies, licensing, and merchandising alone over the span of just a few years.

ATT stocks aren't looking good and going into more debt may not be an option once the stakeholders start speaking up to protect their payouts.

[Kirby101]

The danger is AT&T isn't an entertainment company if WB or HBO is a bust, they could sell it, or sell it off in pieces. They have no stake in keeping it whole. What ever gets the best return.
What's best for the customer isn't even considered.

[ComicJunkie21]

The danger is AT&T isn't an entertainment company if WB or HBO is a bust, they could sell it, or sell it off in pieces. They have no stake in keeping it whole. What ever gets the best return.
What's best for the customer isn't even considered.

This is completely true and shows in their decisions.

[SUPERECWFAN1]

I'm old enough to remember when similar things were said about Disney when they paid $70 million or something for Fox.

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Disney's deal for 21st Century Fox was one that really had them not pay that total figure in cash. In fact the deal was part stock as well. A big factor on why Fox's executives favored Disney was the stock deal that would see them make more after the sale was done. Yeah Disney paid a lot for this deal. But in a decade with streaming , movie properties etc ...Disney will come out way ahead as they have with Marvel and Star Wars.

They play the long game of things. Meanwhile AT&T was trying to sell off its billion dollar generating game division until someone spoke up who had common sense and said , we best not sell that ! lol.

[Beantownbrown]

‘The Future’ Sci-Fi Tech Drama In Works At HBO Max From Matt Reeves’ 6th & Idaho & ‘Run’ Team

[Maestro 216]

Disney's deal for 21st Century Fox was one that really had them not pay that total figure in cash. In fact the deal was part stock as well. A big factor on why Fox's executives favored Disney was the stock deal that would see them make more after the sale was done. Yeah Disney paid a lot for this deal. But in a decade with streaming , movie properties etc ...Disney will come out way ahead as they have with Marvel and Star Wars.

They play the long game of things. Meanwhile AT&T was trying to sell off its billion dollar generating game division until someone spoke up who had common sense and said , we best not sell that ! lol.

Ehh Fox seems to have a more immediate pay off than Lucasfilm. While Force Awakens did well, the following two lost more money for Disney.

[WebLurker]

Ehh Fox seems to have a more immediate pay off than Lucasfilm. While Force Awakens did well, the following two lost more money for Disney.

Where was that established? (Recall that TROS and Solo underperformed, but the other movies were in the black).