Max is moving into the world of live sports.
The video streaming service that is best known for its on-demand HBO and Discovery content soon will feature live games from Major League Baseball (MLB), National Basketball Association (NBA), National Hockey League (NHL), NCAA basketball and more.
Max unveiled details for its new sports subscription add-on, which it is branding “B/R Sports” as a nod to the Warner Bros. Discovery-owned sports brand Bleacher Report.
In this article, I’ll walk you through what they’re planning, how much it will cost and if it will be worth it for cord cutters.
Table of Contents
- What Is B/R Sports?
- How Much Will It Cost?
- What Live Sporting Events Will Be Included?
- Final Thoughts
What Is B/R Sports?
B/R Sports is the new live sports add-on for the Max streaming service. It will launch on October 5, 2023, and existing Max subscribers will get to use it at no additional cost for a limited time.
Max, which is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, will leverage content from sister companies like TBS, TNT, truTV and Bleacher Report to offer a way for cord cutters to watch live sports without paying for a live TV streaming service like YouTube TV.
This won’t get you access to NFL games, but it will provide some live broadcasts of games from America’s other three major sports leagues: MLB, NBA and NHL.
How Much Will It Cost?
For a limited time, the B/R Sports Add-on will be included for existing Max subscribers. B/R Sports will be provided free of charge from October 5, 2023 until February 29, 2024.
Consider that a free trial of sorts because it will have a monthly cost after that complimentary preview period.
The B/R Sports Add-on will cost $9.99 per month.
And, unfortunately, it won’t be offered as a standalone product. You won’t be able to access this content without a base subscription to Max.
The cheapest monthly plan for Max is the ad-supported plan that will cost you $9.99 per month. Committing to an annual plan can drop that effective monthly rate as low as $8.33.
So, while you will see the plan marketed for $9.99, in reality, you’re looking at upwards of a $20 per month commitment to get access to the content on B/R Sports.
What Live Sporting Events Will Be Included?
Max is using superstars like Stephen Curry (basketball), Mookie Betts (baseball) and Connor McDavid (hockey) as the cover athletes to promote this service. And it’s true that you will be able to watch live games with all three of those players.
Max says there will be more than 300 “premium” live sporting events available via the B/R Sports Add-on each year.
Some of the popular Warner Bros. Discovery broadcasts you’ll be able to access include:
- NBA on TNT (including regular season, in-season tournament, All-Star game and playoffs)
- NHL on TNT (including regular season, playoffs, Winter Classic and more)
- MLB (Regular season and playoffs)
- NCAA March Madness (all games broadcasted on TNT, TBS and truTV)
- USA Soccer
- The Match (Golf competitions)
Existing users who are receiving limited-time complimentary access to B/R Sports Add-on during October will get access to MLB playoffs, NHL opening night and NBA opening night during the trial period.
In addition to the live sports offerings, B/R Sports will also have on-demand sports content.
According to Max, this includes: “pre- and post-game studio programming, expansive multi-sport VOD content, special features, and live series from Bleacher Report (e.g., live coverage of the NFL Draft, popular vodcasts, and the Creator League).”
Final Thoughts
Max has joined NBC’s Peacock, ViacomCBS’ Paramount+ and Apple TV+ as a value video streaming service that has decided to add live sports content.
This move is yet another blow to traditional cable bundles, and gives cord cutters another opportunity to pay for live sports without having to commit to an expensive live TV streaming service.
Warner Bros. Discovery is essentially leveraging its sports broadcasting rights from legacy networks like TBS, TNT and truTV to reach a cord-cutting audience.
And with regular season and playoff games from leagues like MLB, NBA, NHL and NCAA basketball included, Max is likely to have some takers.
Are you a Max subscriber who is also a sports fan? Will you utilize this B/R Sports Add-on? Could this lead to you cutting the cord on your cable subscription? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the Clark.com community.
