HBO Max is offering up free movie tickets as a carrot to get its monthly subscribers to switch over to annual plans.
The service is emailing customers with a limited time offer of up to four free tickets for upcoming theatrical releases including “King Richard, “The Matrix Resurrections” or some 2022 Warner Bros. movies like “The Batman.” if they switch to any annual plan, either ad-free or ad-supported. The company is promising new and existing subscribers can save 17% by switching.
HBO Max’s ad-free plan, which includes 4K content, currently retails for $14.99 per month or $149.99 per year and the ad-supported plan retails for $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year.
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The new offer suggests that WarnerMedia is at least slightly concerned about elevated churn in 2022 once the Warner Bros. same-day streaming releases end. Late in 2020, HBO Max made the surprising move to release all of its 2021 films in theaters and on HBO Max, where they were available for 30 days before becoming available for rent or purchase through digital platforms.
In 2022, Warner Bros. will reportedly make 12 films for theatrical release and 12 original films for HBO Max, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
However, the same-day releases for 2021 aren’t done yet and it appears the initiative has helped HBO Max accelerate subscriber growth this year.
HBO and HBO Max reached 69.4 million total global subscribers at the end of the third quarter, putting AT&T in good shape to hit its year-end guidance for the service.
The service grew by 12.5 million subscribers year over year and domestic HBO and HBO Max subscribers hit 45.2 million, up 7.1 million in past year. AT&T said it expects HBO and HBO Max to end 2021 at around 73 million subscribers, which is the high end of its previously issued guidance. The company has forecast between 120 million and 150 million total subscribers by the end of 2025.