Warner Bros Discovery targets 150 million streaming service subscribers by 2026

Warner Bros Discovery on Thursday projected at least 150 million users for its streaming service by 2026, after beating estimates for fourth-quarter subscriber gains on Max’s global expansion.

The rebranding of HBO Max to Max and its international rollouts have been central to the company’s efforts to boost streaming service subscriptions in a hyper-competitive market.

The company launched Max in markets such as Southeast Asia, Taiwan and Hong Kong in November and plans to debut the service in Australia in March.

Max is now available in more than 70 countries and will be rolled out in Germany and Italy in the first quarter of 2026.

Visible Alpha analysts on average were expecting 135.8 million subscribers for the company’s streaming service by the end of 2026.

Larger rival Netflix had a global subscriber base of nearly 302 million and Disney+ had 124.6 million, according to latest available data.

Warner’s streaming business, which includes the Max and Discovery+ services, added 6.4 million direct-to-consumer subscribers in the fourth quarter, zooming past estimates of 4.89 million.

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The streaming segment reported adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $409 million, exceeding expectations for $289.1 million, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Warner Bros Discovery and peers are navigating a challenging linear TV market as audiences’ shift to streaming services drive a decline in advertising and subscription revenue.

Advertising revenue at the TV networks division, which includes Discovery Channel, Animal Planet and Food Network, tumbled 17% to $1.62 billion.

The company reported revenue of $10.03 billion for the three months ended December 31, compared with analysts’ average estimate of $10.19 billion.

Excluding items, the company lost 20 cents per share, while analysts had expected a profit of 1 cent.