HBO Max Still Isn't on Roku, But It's Now Available on 2 New Devices

HBO Max is now available on the Xfinity X1 and the Xfinity Flex. Sadly, the streaming service is [...]

By Michael Hein

HBO Max is now available on the Xfinity X1 and the Xfinity Flex. Sadly, the streaming service is still not available on Roku devices, despite months of user outcry. However, many cable users will have much easier access to its library just in time for the holiday season.

HBO Max launched in May, but the roll-out was complicated by its absence from the Roku and Amazon Fire TV app stores. The two streaming hardware companies already had existing agreements with WarnerMedia for HBO cable apps, and they were not eager to renegotiate those terms for a streaming service differently. HBO Max has built up a huge base of users and a prodigious library in spite of its platform troubles, and now many Xfinity subscribers will see the finished product. WarnerMedia and Comcast made the announcement on Tuesday.

"Since launching HBO Max, our teams have worked closely to deliver an HBO Max experience that would provide more frictionless access to Xfinity X1 and Flex customers, and we're thrilled to debut the app today," said Jennifer Mirgorod, Head of Sales and Account Management at WarnerMedia Distribution. "Millions of Xfinity customers can now easily explore all that HBO Max has to offer with a simple voice command."

The Xfinity X1 and Flex devices will offer the full range of HBO Max features, including 4K Ultra HD, HDR 10, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos on select programs. All of those resolutions will be available for Wonder Woman 1984, which launches on Christmas Day. HBO Max will reportedly be available on the Xfinity devices by then as well.

In the meantime, the stalemate between Roku and HBO Max drags on. The two companies claim that they are in negotiations for a deal, but so far non has worked out. Roku's top competitor, Amazon Fire TV, recently agreed to host an HBO Max app, but Roku still has not. However, Roku now hosts two "casting" apps for Apple devices, allowing users to project HBO Max from their iPhone, iPad or Mac onto the TV through certain Roku devices.

A new complication has cropped up for HBO Max as well: the PlayStation 5. Earlier in the year, many subscribers used their video game consoles to watch HBO Max since it wasn't available on their other devices. While it is still working on the PlayStation 4, it is curiously missing from the new PS5. So far, there is no word on when that will be fixed either.

However you watch, HBO Max will be a must-have streaming service in the months to come, since Warner Bros. entire 2021 film slate will premiere on the platform. It is available now for $14.99 per month.

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