this post was submitted on 14 May 2025
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[–] [email protected] 148 points 1 month ago (5 children)

Companies that reach a certain critical mass really truly become incompetent. I don't mean just evil or profit first, I mean simply incompetent at the most basic aspects of running a business. There are marketing departments that behave as if the entire team is composed of interns frantically googling marketing slang.

Warner Bros, Hasbro, Apple, they're carried by the inertia of their gigantic size and the customers that were alive to have moulded their vision about the company during their good years.

[–] [email protected] 21 points 1 month ago

They don't even need to reach critical mass. The last place I was at was a shitshow held together by a handful of overachievers. At every level there were idiots making decisions and protecting friendly mouth-breathers. And when we would contact the Big Players in the industry, it was much the same on their end. It got to the point where I had to remind people that just because you're calling Big Name Brand, the person you're talking to is you. And they report to Dave (the know-nothing manager we all worked under). Nobody has a fucking clue. So cut the person on the other end of the line some slack.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago

Number must go up. Forever and ever.

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[–] [email protected] 90 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Can't wait for everyone to call it "HBO Max, formerly known as HBO Max".

[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 month ago (1 children)

The channel formerly formerly known as HBO MAX.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 month ago (1 children)

The channel currently and formerly known as HBO Max

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[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

HBO Max formerly Max formerly HBO Max formerly HBO Now formerly HBO Go.

Edit: I forgot one.

[–] [email protected] 67 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I had a survey from them where I answered that dropping HBO from their branding was the second stupidest fucking decision they've made since Zaslav became CEO. Second only to removing legacy content and canning complete movies for tax purposes. That was maybe a month and change ago.

[–] [email protected] 30 points 1 month ago

Nice. You did it!!!

[–] [email protected] 56 points 1 month ago

Somehow, HBO Max returned.

[–] [email protected] 45 points 1 month ago (3 children)

They canceled all the good shows and replaced them with "reality" tv slop. No one gives a fuck what you call a trash fire, it is still a trash fire.

[–] [email protected] 21 points 1 month ago

Trash Fire MAX

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[–] [email protected] 45 points 1 month ago

It never stopped being HBO Max to me.

/it's OK to deadname non-human entities

[–] [email protected] 44 points 1 month ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago

Logo designers without much talent not originality must make a living, too.

[–] [email protected] 44 points 1 month ago (3 children)

Inb4 it turns just to HBO and then a nameless entity. It has no name. It just exists. Like death.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 month ago (1 children)

A streaming service has no name.

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[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 month ago

The streaming service formerly known as...

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[–] [email protected] 30 points 1 month ago

Newsflash, asshole!

Everybody's been calling it HBO the entire god damned time!

[–] [email protected] 27 points 1 month ago (2 children)

HBO was the better name. And even Cinemax is a better name than Max.

I kept calling it HBO Max after the first change.

Most CEOs of entertainment companies are just people with business degrees who wish they were creative, but just aren't.

[–] SatanClaus 6 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

The problem is they don't ever stop paying the marketing team. Eventually you don't need more marketing and yet. Gestures around. Just hire a PR team for fucks sake.

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago (2 children)

HBO objected to HBO Max, so it was rebranded to Max. Now the top HBO execs have left so they’re changing it back.

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[–] [email protected] 25 points 1 month ago (3 children)

If they really want customers back

  • Finish Westworld (they had one season left) and put it back on the service
  • Release the Batgirl movie
  • Release the Cyote movie (though I think they actually sold this one)
[–] [email protected] 26 points 1 month ago (2 children)
  • Bring back all the adult swim/cartoon network content they axed
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[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 month ago

More westworld yes please

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[–] [email protected] 23 points 1 month ago (2 children)

I think I only call it Max instead of HBO or HBO Max less than 25% of the time. This rebrand was goofy. Still not as bad as Twitter's.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 month ago (2 children)

I've just always defaulted to HBO, especially considering much of their older content still has HBO pop up as a credit.

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[–] [email protected] 21 points 1 month ago

The original change dropping HBO was one of the stupidest branding changes I've ever seen (and there's a lot of competition). To be honest, they'd be better off dropping the Max part instead.

[–] [email protected] 20 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Please use a cw. I almost died laughing.

Damn, these companies are running around like headless chickens.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 month ago

We should laugh at David Zaslav every chance we can

[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Ah, I almost forgot it was officially called Max, they kept the brand 'HBO Max' here. During the rebrand they found out we already had a public broadcaster called 'Omroep MAX', which is often shortened to just MAX in the names of their programs. Trying to claim that name would probably have not gone well for HBO.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 month ago (1 children)

polygon about to be slop too https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2025/05/gaming-news-site-polygon-gutted-by-massive-layoffs-amid-sale-to-valnet/

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 month ago (3 children)

Don't forget... people got paid huge amounts to make these decisions 🙄

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[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

subscribed to Max

found zero Max Verstappen race wins

cancelled

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 month ago

Are they also renaming their plans? Can't wait to sign up to HBO Max Max

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 month ago (3 children)

2055: Coca Cola Nestle Max Monsanto HBO

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago

Monstanto has already been eaten by Bayer, and HBO isn't that big a fish so I wouldn't bet on that name to be honest

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[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 month ago
[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 month ago

HBO Sometimes Max

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Probably because "Max" sounds more like streaming service for cinemax than HBO. Just bad branding and arguably opens them up to copyright suit.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Why the fuck do they keep changing the name? What happened to HBO Go?

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 month ago

This might be the funniest shit I've read.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 month ago (1 children)
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