HBO Max could disappear within the next two years as the streaming industry undergoes major consolidation. A Wall Street analyst predicts the platform will effectively shut down by the end of 2027 following the merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery.
The prediction comes less than a year after Warner Bros. Discovery restored the HBO name to its streaming platform. The company had previously removed the HBO branding in 2023 and renamed the service simply Max before reversing the decision and bringing the HBO brand back.
Industry analyst Robert Fishman said in a recent research note that HBO Max is likely to be phased out as the combined company restructures its streaming strategy. The expected shutdown would coincide with plans to merge HBO Max and Paramount+ into a single platform.
“We expect HBO Max to essentially be shut down at the end of 2027,” MoffettNathanson analyst Robert Fishman wrote in a research note.
People are not entirely thrilled about the developments as they took to express their frustration under the X post highlighting Fishman’s analysis:
If they do this I’m done.
NOBODY does it better than the OG, Home Box Office.I thought we had laws to STOP monopolies?
I guess that explains how Congress all become millionaires. #SaveHBO— 💙 𝐓𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐫 💙💪🏼🇺🇸 (@TamiSFGiantFan) March 8, 2026
The merger followed a lengthy acquisition process that reshaped the media landscape. Netflix initially announced an 82.7 billion dollar deal involving Paramount, triggering a series of competing takeover bids. The process ended when the Warner Bros. Discovery board accepted David Ellison’s 31 dollar per share offer. Netflix declined to counter the bid and exited the process after receiving a 2.8 billion dollar breakup fee.
“HBO should stay HBO,” Ellison said during a recent call with industry analysts last week as he praised HBO content chairman Casey Bloys. “Casey and his team are doing an absolutely remarkable job at HBO and we do plan for that to be able to operate with independence, so that HBO can candidly do what it does incredibly well.”
After the acquisition closed, Ellison outlined plans to combine Paramount+ and HBO Max into a unified streaming service. Details about the platform remain limited, and executives have not yet announced the final name, pricing structure, or organization of the service.
Ellison emphasized that HBO will remain an independent creative brand inside the merged company. He praised HBO leadership and said the network should continue operating with autonomy to maintain its reputation for high quality television.
The distinction suggests that HBO will survive as a production brand even if the HBO Max streaming platform disappears.
The potential shutdown would mark the third major identity change for the service in only a few years. The platform launched as HBO Max, was rebranded as Max in 2023, and then returned to the HBO Max name in 2025.
For now, the shutdown remains an analyst forecast rather than confirmed company policy. Executives have not announced how existing subscribers will transition to the combined service or what pricing model the new platform will adopt.
