Sept 12 (Askume) – Charter Communications (CHTR.O) said on Thursday it will make Warner Bros Discovery ‘s (WBD.O) Max streaming service and Discovery+ free, potentially boosting the cable and broadband company’s subscriber base.
Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery were up nearly 7% in early trading, while Charter shares were up more than 2%.
Announcing the early renewal of the multi-year agreement, the companies said all Spectrum TV Select packages will offer an ad-supported version of Max that includes all HBO and Discovery+ content. Charter is the largest pay television company in the United States.
Max and Discovery+ will be added to Spectrum’s bundle, which already includes streaming platforms Disney+, ESPN+ and Paramount+ (PARA.O) .
As part of the agreement, Spectrum will continue to operate Warner Bros. Discovery’s portfolio of television networks, including sports network TNT, CNN, Food Network, and Discovery.
The media and entertainment giant’s TV business is struggling as consumers are disconnected and the advertising market is recovering weakly.
The companies did not disclose financial terms of the deal.
Investor concerns grew after Warner Bros. failed to renew Discovery Channel’s broadcast rights to National Basketball Association (NBA) games. The media company sued the NBA in New York after the NBA rejected its matching offer .
Charter won some concessions from Walt Disney Co (DIS.N) last year . It negotiated smaller programming packages and the rights to distribute Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ to its Spectrum TV customers.
