CNN Max is shutting down. Warner Bros. Discovery announced that starting next month, HBO Max will no longer carry CNN’s 24/7 live feed. Instead, subscribers will only see select on-demand CNN programs like Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy, and The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper.
The decision effectively ends CNN’s short-lived presence on HBO Max as a live channel. In response, CNN attempted to spin the move as part of a broader strategy. A spokesman claimed the two-year experiment “benefited tremendously” by allowing CNN to learn what HBO Max subscribers enjoyed most. That framing sidesteps the reality that CNN’s ratings have collapsed and its content continues to be a drag on Warner Bros. Discovery’s stock value.
The exit from HBO Max comes as CNN prepares to launch yet another standalone streaming service later this year. Reports suggest the new service will feature live channels and on-demand programming, an effort to consolidate CNN’s video offerings under one roof. However, the strategy is reminiscent of the network’s spectacular failure with CNN+, which was shuttered in 2022 after only four weeks.
The corporate shake-up does not end there. Warner Bros. Discovery recently announced plans to spin off CNN and other struggling cable outlets into a separate publicly traded company. Analysts say the move is designed to stop CNN from weighing down the parent company’s performance.
The network faces an uphill battle. Cable television revenues are shrinking, while CNN has failed to sustain advertising profits due to historically low ratings. Without the lucrative carriage fees that propped up the network for years, its future depends on convincing viewers to pay for direct subscriptions—an uncertain gamble given its past failures.
CNN may remain on air, but its influence has faded. Its new streaming gamble will determine whether the network can survive in a marketplace where viewers increasingly reject its brand of partisan news.
