While consumers may revolt over HBO Max yanking shows like “Westworld” and “The Nevers” to license them to third-party free, ad-supported streaming television (FAST) services, industry insiders say Warner Bros. Discovery’s latest cost-cutting measures actually plays well to investors.
The move signals that CEO David Zaslav and his team believe “siloing certain assets is no longer the best way to maximize value,” Monroe Capital’s head of media finance Matthew Rosenberg told TheWrap.
“The question has been how do we build enterprise value in HBO Max? Up until now, it’s been let’s just send all of our stuff there,” Rosenberg said. “Maybe the anchor stuff belongs to be siloed, like the DC movies… but for less critical properties, maximizing value to that company could mean licensing it into the market rather than siloing it from within.”