There is a lot going on at Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) right now.
The company's newly anointed brass canned major movies and TV shows en masse, regardless of cost (Batgirl) or critical reception (Gordita Chronicles), while the threat of mass layoffs (opens in a new tab) looms grimly over those who work for its broadcast divisions.
The restructuring comes as WBD attempts to cut roughly €3bn in operating costs, savings it reportedly plans to reinvest in content creation when its grand ambition, a new super-streamer for all, becomes a reality in 2023.
The platform in question will see the conglomerate merge its existing HBO Max and Discovery Plus properties into a comprehensive streaming service that offers "something for everyone in the home," according to WBD boss JB Perrette.
Currently, WBD's entertainment lineup includes, among other networks, HBO, CNN, DC Comics, Discovery Channel, Food Network, HGTV, Magnolia Network, OWN, TBS and TNT, all of which will be integrated into this as-yet-unnamed streamer. as of 2023.
Sounds good, right? Well not really. In addition to the aforementioned downsizing, the launch of said streaming service will come at the expense of HBO Max, which has become a bastion of high-profile programming in the two years since its launch.
Yes, HBO's biggest hits -- think Euphoria and Succession -- will inevitably transfer to this mysterious new platform, but WBD has expressed an explicit desire to scale back production of scripted content, and suffice to say, consumers aren't pleased.
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As so eloquently mentioned in previous tweets, WBD's decision to cut original programming is damaging the reputation of HBO, which is widely recognized as the leading producer of premium television thanks to such critical, commercial and cultural successes as Game of Thrones. Chernobyl, The Sopranos, Band of Brothers and The Wire.
Upcoming IP-based productions, including House of the Dragon and The Last of Us TV, will try to carry on this tradition, but where will the new ideas come from? WBD seems to be foolishly betting on the idea that subscribers will turn to unscripted content offered by Discovery Channel, CNN and TBS when they run out of premium TV to watch.
In any case, the company seems intent on its new master plan for streaming. "At the end of the day, bringing all the content together was the only way we saw to make it a viable business," Perrette told analysts. Fine, but if HBO wants to remain television's gold network, WBD needs to reevaluate its commitment (or lack thereof) to boundary-pushing original programming.
Otherwise, the conglomerate risks facing the same criticism leveled recently at Netflix, whose crushing of mass-produced movies, shows and reality shows has left it on the fringes of subscribers and in the midst of a reputational spiral.
HBO's name is hallowed in the world of small-screen entertainment, and Warner Bros. Discovery would do well to remember this.