On October 6, 2026, Paramount closed its purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery, and the combined company, now called Skydance, confirmed the HBO Max Paramount Plus merger that subscribers had been wondering about. In its closing announcement, Skydance said its streaming products “will unify into a single service over time.”
That one sentence matters to a lot of households. If you pay for HBO Max, Paramount+ or both, the apps on your TV and phone are headed toward becoming one. For now, nothing changes on your bill or your home screen, and Skydance has not given a date, a name or a price.
What the HBO Max Paramount Plus merger changes
Skydance now owns two global streaming services under one roof, and the company counts more than 200 million streaming subscribers across its platforms. Its plan is to improve those apps first and then fold them together gradually, rather than flipping a switch overnight.
The people running the combined streaming business are already in place. Casey Bloys, who has led HBO and Max content, is co-chair of Skydance’s direct-to-consumer unit and oversees original programming for both HBO Max and Paramount+. JB Perrette is the other co-chair, handling distribution, advertising, marketing and business operations. Chief product officer Dane Glasgow owns the app you will eventually open.
Families who lived through the 2023 shift, when Discovery’s reality and documentary shows were folded into the Max app alongside HBO and Warner movies, have seen a version of this before. Expect one login, a bigger library and some reshuffling of where shows live.
Which streaming apps are part of the deal
| Service | Owned by Skydance | Named in the single-service plan |
|---|---|---|
| HBO Max | Yes | Covered by the plan to unify streaming products |
| Paramount+ | Yes | Covered by the plan to unify streaming products |
| Discovery+ | Yes | Not addressed separately |
| Pluto TV (free, ad-supported) | Yes | Not addressed separately |
What to do with your subscriptions right now
The HBO Max Paramount Plus merger asks nothing of you today. A little housekeeping, though, will make the switch easier later.
- Check how you pay. Look at whether each service is billed directly, through Apple, Google, Amazon, Roku or bundled by your phone or internet provider.
- Avoid long prepaid plans for now. An annual plan locks in today’s price, but it could also leave you with credit on an app that later gets merged. Monthly billing keeps your options open.
- Tidy up profiles and watchlists. Kids’ profiles, parental controls and saved lists are the things most likely to need rebuilding after a merger. Note your PIN settings now.
- Ask whether you need both. If you only keep one service for a single show, this is a good moment to rotate rather than stack. Our guide to streaming your favorite content more affordably has more ways to trim the monthly total.
What Skydance has not said yet
The biggest open questions are the ones families care about most. Skydance has not announced when the HBO Max Paramount Plus merger will happen, what the combined app will be called, how much it will cost or whether current subscribers will be moved over automatically.
There is also no word yet on whether today’s ad tiers survive, how many people can stream at once, or what happens to existing bundle deals. Co-CEO Ynon Kreiz spoke of wanting to “accelerate our integrated DTC platform with the best content,” which points toward one app but stops short of details.
Our own read: an HBO Max Paramount Plus merger tied to a company chasing at least $6 billion in yearly savings within three years is unlikely to make streaming cheaper. Treat any price as unknown until Skydance publishes one, but do not budget for a discount.
One detail does affect movie night. Skydance committed to at least 30 theatrical films a year, each with a minimum 45-day run in theaters. So new studio releases will still reach your couch roughly six weeks or more after opening day, not sooner. If you are shopping for a new box for the living room in the meantime, our streaming device buying guide covers what to look for.
HBO Max and Paramount Plus merger questions
When will HBO Max and Paramount Plus merge?
There is no date yet. Skydance only says its streaming products will become a single service over time, so expect a gradual rollout rather than an overnight switch.
Will the HBO Max Paramount Plus merger raise prices?
Skydance has not announced pricing for the combined service. Nothing in the announcement changes what you pay today.
Is Paramount Plus and HBO Max the same app now?
No. They remain separate apps with separate subscriptions today, even though one company now owns both.
Should you cancel HBO Max or Paramount+ before they merge?
No need to cancel anything yet. If you subscribe to both, stay month to month and let Skydance show its hand on price and features first. If you only keep one for a single series, the HBO Max Paramount Plus merger is a fine excuse to rotate instead of paying for two. Either way, the remote stays the same for now; only the menu is about to get crowded.
