WarnerMedia’s planned new streaming service will include both subscription-based content and ad-supported elements.
Randall Stephenson, CEO of parent company AT&T, said the plan is for the streaming service to have a ‘two-sided model’.
“We have really high expectations for our streaming service. We don’t think there’s going to be a proliferation of these that will succeed over time,” Stephenson said.
“Subscription, commercial-free elements like HBO and like Netflix, there’s a demand and customers have become accustomed to advertising-free subscription services,” Stephen told analysts. “And we think HBO and a lot of the Warner Bros content, that’s really premium content, will fit into that mould.”
At the same time, he added, “There are other elements where advertising-supported models are going to be important to keep prices down, to keep costs for the consumer down and to actually fund additional content acquisition and purchasing.”
WarnerMedia is expected to launch its streaming service by the end of 2019. It was revealed late last year that the new service will have three tiers and incorporate some HBO content.
