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A lot of us knocking around in the world are old enough to recall the Dark Ages of television when, if you wanted to catch a favorite program or movie, you needed a strong pair of rabbit ears (also known as an antennae), a little bit of tinfoil and a whole lot of good luck – and not necessarily in that order. Over time, of course, things changed and cable television grew into a lucrative business offering us former two to three channel households a plethora of viewing choices from MTV to underwater basket weaving. The airwaves became our playground and our remote controls became the VIP All Access Pass. Now even that Happy Hunting Ground of visual and audio goodness has become somewhat archaic (and even cost prohibitive with certain cable TV packages) and has ceded the way for the almighty streaming platforms – Praise be to UFO Godmother and Roku! –which offer such an abundance of programming that, two years into my own streaming journey (sounds weird, don’t it?), I still feel as if I’ve not even scratched the surface of all the oddball stuff out there to watch. And this phenomenon is not strictly a U.S. “thing”, but has rather moved into nearly all corners of the world in an invasion that seemingly invites a hearty chorus of Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries.
In the latest bit of streaming platform takeover, our digest-sized TV Guide fanatics over at The Hollywood Reporter announced today that HBO Max is set to unveil its bells and whistles and respective wares in Spain and across the great land of Scandinavia in 2021, before finally conquering 1492 style Central Europe and Portugal in 2022. You’re welcome, world.
At the moment, our pals at HBO Max can only be accessed in the United States and in a mere thirty nine territories over Latin America and the Caribbean. Those plans are obviously now shifting with today’s announcement of the Nordic region and Spain being on the cusp of receiving the popular streaming service this very year, with the remainder of Europe to follow next year. “Europe is a huge priority for us,” announced Priya Dogra, Big Wheel and President of WarnerMedia Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia (sans China). “It’s a complicated market, but an exciting one.” Pretty sure that Ms. Dogra will even eventually be able to get HBO Max to Middle Earth, if she has her druthers.
HBO Max at this moment has 67.5 million subscribers across the globe, but guess what? This intrepid reporter still misses those long ago rabbit ears. Sigh.
