Discovery+ will continue, According to reports

According to unnamed sources cited by The Wall Street Journal, Warner Bros. Discovery has decided against fully integrating the streaming service Discovery+ with HBO Max and will instead keep the former available as a separate subscription. There are still very few official facts available regarding the new service, including its name. However, it's still in the works, and according to WSJ, Discovery+ will continue to be a less expensive choice with fewer content. The new service, which is anticipated to launch later this year, would contain Discovery content in addition to HBO content and more from the larger Warner Bros. library. Photo Credit: MediaPost According to those familiar with the situation, the decision to preserve Discovery+ was made to prevent losing a substantial portion of the app's 20 million customers who might not want to pay the higher price to access that material. It will therefore be one new service to govern them all as well as Discovery+, as opposed to one new service to rule them all. No information has yet been released regarding pricing. At the moment, Discovery+ costs $7 a month without ads or $5 with them. HBO Max has a monthly fee of $10 with advertising and $16 without. These HBO Max pricing represent the service's first price rise in its existence. If it all seems a little perplexing, that's because it is. It all stems from the drama of AT&T purchasing Warner Bros., forming WarnerMedia, and then selling it to this new Warner Bros. Discovery company, which has new management and new business plans but a more cohesive technological foundation. The adjustments have also resulted in a genuine carnage of content, with current shows getting the axe, upcoming shows and movies being killed off before they are ever released, and other on-demand stuff being completely withdrawn from the platform. Photo Credit: Deadline In order to maximize revenue, the WSJ report also claims that Warner Bros. Discovery is developing FAST, a free service backed by advertisements, similar to Tubi or The Roku Channel that would draw in more viewers. Making matters a little more complicated, Warner Bros. Discovery recently signed a deal with Tubi that adds 14 Warner Bros.-branded channels and more than 2,000 hours of films and television shows to the Fox-owned service. These shows include some HBO series that were dropped from the service, such as Westworld, Raised by Wolves, The Nevers, and others, as well as some HBO series that are now available.