Amazon is an American-based multinational tech firm that deals with e-commerce, artificial intelligence, streaming services, and cloud computing. Jeff Bezos founded it in 1994 in his garage at Bellevue. Amazon is now a remarkable name in the e-commercial industry. It not only offers services to consumers, enterprises, sellers, and content creators but also exhibits other marketing and promotional services, for example, co-branded credit card agreements and online advertising. Now the question is Does Amazon Own HBO?
Amazon does not own HBO. Instead, it allows streaming of HBO’s contents through Amazon Prime Video. Amazon Prime Video, better known as Prime Video, is an American subscription OTT streaming service of Amazon that is offered as part of Amazon’s Prime subscription. But in 2020, Amazon and HBO reached an agreement where they decided to pull off HBO’s contents from Amazon. In September 2021, HBO’s subscription to Prime Video got canceled. So, it is no more available on Prime Video.
If not HBO, then what does Amazon own?
From acquiring Book pages in the UK in 1998 as the oldest to Veeqo in the UK in 2021 as the latest, Amazon owns a lot of renowned companies and has many subsidiaries. Some of the emerging popular companies owned by Amazon are IMDb, Alexa Internet, Shopbop, Audible, Box Office Mojo, Zappos, Woot, Goodreads, UpNext, Coud9 IDE, Whole Foods Market, Wickr, and a lot more.
- Amazon also gives away a variety of streaming content through Amazon Prime Video, Twitch, Amazon Music, and Audible which are different units of the Amazon domain.
- It even publishes books via its publishing chain, Amazon Publishing.
- It provides film and television content under Amazon Studios and owns the famous MGM Studio since 2022.
- It also manufactures consumer electronics such as Echo devices, Kindle e-readers, Fire tablets, and Fire TV.
What is HBO and who owns it?
HBO (Home Box Office) is an American-based paid television network. It is owned by Warner Media Studios & Networks, Warner Media Communications LLC, and Home Box Office Inc. Richard Plepler is the CEO of HBO Inc. who is responsible for managing the world’s most successful and popular paid TV service providing two television networks – HBO and Cinemax – to over 131 million subscribers in more than 60 countries and its programming into greater than 180 territories.
- HBO initially served as two platforms – HBO Go and HBO Now. HBO Go was streaming for those who got their HBO subscription through a cable connection.
- HBO Now was a free-standing independent streaming service. It displayed the same content as HBO Go without any cable subscription. But ever since HBO Max was launched, HBO Go and HBO Now were all merged into HBO Max.
- HBO Max offers everything that HBO offers along with blockbuster movies, HBO Max Originals such as Looney Tunes, and content from other brands of Warner Media and Warner Bros. like the DC Universe, and New Line Cinema, Cartoon Network, and many more.
- Due to Warner Media’s direct-to-consumer business, HBO suffered a loss of, net 1.8 million customers after its deal with Amazon to discontinue streaming HBO’s contents in mid-September of 2021.
- As of now, in 2022, HBO and HBO Max altogether have near about 73.8 million subscribers.
Why do people think Amazon owns HBO?
Previously, HBO’s contents were available on Amazon Prime Video which is a distinct part of the Amazon domain. Only a subscription was required, and then you could easily stream your favorite HBO shows or movies on Amazon Prime Video. Hence some people still think that Amazon perhaps owns HBO.
Is there any possibility of Amazon owning HBO in the future?
Warner Media already signed an agreement to part ways with Amazon as they wanted HBO Max solely to be the limelight for its subscribers. So, there are fewer chances of keeping hope that Amazon will own HBO in the future. However, despite being the second-largest company in the country based on revenue, Amazon still aims at growing bigger and has many investment plans ahead. Amazon loves to spread out its arms in new sectors such as it experiments in healthcare areas and works on its automated checkout technology known as Just Walk Out. Similarly, it always tries to add new content to Prime Video. Hence it can reinvest in adding HBO’s contents back to prime video.
Conclusion
HBO itself is one of the biggest and the most talked-about television networks with a huge number of growing subscribers every day whereas Amazon has earned fame as the world’s largest online retailer and marketplace. Both are equally successful in their field. So, there is no point in one owning the other. However, CEO Jeff Bezos says that it is always Day One at Amazon, which means the company pretends to act like a start-up despite being one of the biggest companies in the world. If they collaborate in the future, it would be a piece of great news for their subscribers.
Frequently Asked Questions
1.Was HBO removed from Amazon?
Yes, Warner Media decided to remove HBO’s contents from Amazon.
2.Why was HBO removed from Amazon?
Warner Media and Amazon concluded to remove HBO from Amazon Channels because Warner Media wanted HBO Max to become the leading source for subscribers engaging with its streaming content.
3.Who owns HBO at present?
Warner Media Studios & Networks own HBO.
