WarnerMedia's HBO Max Launches in 2020, and It's Bringing 'Friends'The streaming service will come loaded with HBO and Warner Bros content, exclusive originals and a backlog of sitcoms including 'Friends,' which will leave Netflix early next year.

We finally have a name for AT&T-owned WarnerMedia'snew entrantinto the increasingly crowdedvideo streamingmarket: HBO Max is set to launch in spring 2020 with "10,000 hours of premium content."

Pricing has yet to be announced, butThe Wall Street Journalreportsthat it'll be slightly more expensive than the $14.99 monthly subscription cost ofHBO Now. That'll put HBO Max at the most expensive end of the subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) spectrum; more expensive than Netflix's $12.99 Standard plan and more than double the $6.99 monthly cost ofDisney+.

The HBO Max branding is about as creative asApple TV+and Disney+, but both services as well as NBCUniversal's forthcoming streaming app arecoming after Netflix and Amazonwith a combination of originals, deep catalogs of existing content, and new licensing deals for your favorite sitcoms. NBCUniversal istakingThe Officeoff Netflixin 2021, and WarnerMedia announced that HBO Max will carry the exlusive rights toFriendsstarting in 2020. Netflix is taking the news well.

The One Where We Have To Say Goodbye.

We're sorry to see Friends go to Warner's streaming service at the beginning of 2020 (in The US). Thanks for the memories, gang ☕

— Netflix US (@netflix)July 9, 2019

WarnerMedia is paying heavily for the privilege, with theFriendsdeal reportedly costing the entertainment conglomerate $425 million for five years. HBO Max also scooped up the exclusive rights toThe Fresh Prince of Bel AirandPretty Little Liars.

As for original content, WarnerMedia announced production deals with Reese Witherspoon on at least two films, as well as producer Greg Bertlani, who will produce four initial young adult films as well as hourlong thriller seriesThe Flight AttendantstarringThe Big Bang Theory'sKaley Cuocco. HBO Max's slate of original programming also includes:

• Dune: The Sisterhood,from director Denis Villeneuve, who's helming the big-budget film remake for Warner Bros
• Tokyo Vice,a police drama seriesstarring Ansel Elgort
• Love Life, a 10-episode half-hour romantic comedy anthology series starring Anna Kendrick
• Station Eleven,a postapocalyptic limited series directed byAtlanta'sHiro Murai
• Gremlins,an animated series based on the original movie

Of course, the crown jewel of WarnerMedia's streaming service is its namesake; HBO Max will carry HBO's full library of content. It'll also serve as the exclusive streaming home for all CW future shows going forward, includingBatwomanandRiverdalespin-offKaty Keene.The service will also combine content from a range of other AT&T and Time Warner-owned media properties, including Adult Swim, Cartoon Network,Crunchyroll, CNN, DC Entertainment, TBS, TNT, TruTV, Turner Classic Movies, and more.

流的HBO麦克斯将加入一个拥挤的景观services all competing with Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu for consumers' monthly entertainment dollars. Adding Apple TV+, Disney+, NBCUniversal's service, and HBO Max to the marketplace will spread content across more services, forcing consumers to choose their own personal streaming bundles based on the original and licensed shows and movies they care about.

Netflix hasspent billionsstocking its library with originals to prepare for this eventuality over the past several years, but there's no balancing the dwindling value proposition for streaming users. There will soon be more to watch in more places than ever, but the days of having all your favorites in one place are officially over.

Readour story on the streaming-industrial complexfor a deeper dive into this shifting market and what it means for consumers.