Max subscribers will now have to sit through even more commercial breaks.
The Warner Bros. Discovery streaming service has increased ads-per-hour on its Basic with Ads tier, which costs $9.99 per month, to up to six minutes per hour while also introducing ad breaks in the middle of HBO content.
Videos by PopCulture.com
“If you subscribe to the Basic with Ads plan, ads will play before and during shows and movies (about 6 minutes of ads per hour). Ad breaks are marked on the progress bar when you pause playback,” Max’s help center now reads. According to PC World, as recently as February, the page stated that viewers could expect to see around four minutes of ads per hour of content.
The increase in ad times to six minutes marks a nearly 50% increase in commercials for Basic with Ads subscribers. When Max, set to rebrand as HBO Max this summer, launched the ad-supported tier in 2021, it promised no more than four minutes of ads per hour. The streamer also promised not to show ads during HBO programming, but has seemingly backtracked on both of those promises.
Warner Bros. Discovery hasn’t addressed the increased ad time, but it comes as more streaming services put an increased focus on commercial breaks during streaming content to increase revenue. Netflix, Hulu, and Disney+ also offer ad-supported tiers. Earlier this month, Amazon’s Prime Video, which only introduced ads last year, increased ads during viewing from two to three-and-a-half minutes per hour to four to six minutes per hour.
“Prime Video ad load has gradually increased to four to six minutes per hour,” an Amazon representative wrote to an ad buyer in an email obtained by ADWEEK.
The uptick in commercials, bringing streaming closer to cable TV, comes at a cost: more and more subscribers are airing their grievances, especially amid the continuously increasing costs of streaming. Following Max’s implementation of six minutes of ads, subscribers blasted Max’s ad-supported tier as “unwatchable,” as somebody else on Reddit said, “Cool, I’ll be watching 50% less Max programming.” Another person noted that “cut the cord has become everything we were running away from.”
Streamers wishing to avoid ads will have to resort to one of Max’s ad-free tiers – Standard at $16.99 per month or Premium at $20.99 per month.
Most Viewed
-
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert during Monday’s May 18, 2026 show. Photo: Scott Kowalchyk ©2026 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. -
Attend the "Modern Family" ATAS event at Saban Media Center on May 3, 2017 in North Hollywood, California. -
(Credit: Imagesines/Getty Images) -
(Disney/Mike Taing) RICHARD T. JONES, BRIDGET REGAN -
GREY’S ANATOMY – Key Art. (Disney) -
“Reverse the Curse” – Back from tribal, tensions rise following the exit of a particularly historic player. The final five immunity challenge ends in a showdown and features one of the closest finishes the show has ever seen. Jeff reveals the outcomes of the remaining in-game fan votes and how they impact the final stage of the competition. Then, one castaway will be crowned Sole Survivor and awarded the $2 million prize, during the three-hour live season finale, on SURVIVOR 50, Wednesday, May 20 (8:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on-demand for Paramount+ Premium plan subscribers, or on-demand for Paramount+ Essential subscribers the day after the episode airs)*. Jeff Probst serves as host and executive producer. Pictured: Aubry Bracco Photo: Robert Voets/CBS ©2025 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved. -
“A Side Dish of Chaos” – One castaway comes clean to the tribe about a previously deceptive move. The crowd favorite SURVIVOR auction returns, with an extra special season 50 spin. Chaos ensues when social media icon MrBeast arrives on the scene, on SURVIVOR 50, Wednesday, April 29 (8:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT). Photo: Robert Voets/CBS ©2025 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
