HBO Max to launch in Japan through Prime Video and Hulu
Developed over time first seen 2 months ago
Warner Bros Discovery has confirmed that HBO Max will launch in Japan on 1 October, not as a standalone app but as dedicated hubs embedded within Amazon's Prime Video and Hulu Japan. The move significantly widens access to WBD's content in the territory, which had previously been available only through a licensing arrangement with local platform U-Next, and reflects the company's strategy of piggybacking on established local services to build its international footprint ahead of a keenly anticipated new Harry Potter series.
Subscribers will get access to titles including House of the Dragon, The Pitt, The Penguin, Peacemaker, The Last of Us, The White Lotus, Euphoria and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, alongside films such as Barbie and One Battle After Another. Hulu Japan, a separate entity from the Disney-owned Hulu and instead owned by Nippon Television, will also explore distributing its own and Nippon TV's local content on HBO Max internationally. WBD's APAC president James Gibbons said the partnerships build on strong engagement since HBO Max's initial Japan launch, particularly ahead of the new Harry Potter series.
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In short
- HBO Max launches in Japan on 1 October via Prime Video and Hulu hubs
- Ends exclusive reliance on local platform U-Next for HBO content
- Hulu Japan and Nippon TV may distribute local content on HBO Max abroad
How this story developed
- 2 months ago Further detail confirmed the launch will be paired with region-exclusive original programming, most notably a new Harry Potter series set to debut at Christmas, underlining WBD's push to lean on established local platforms rather than a dedicated app to grow its international subscriber base.
- 2 months ago Warner Bros Discovery revealed that HBO Max will roll out in Japan on 1 October as hubs embedded within Amazon Prime Video and Hulu Japan rather than a standalone app, giving subscribers access to titles such as House of the Dragon, The Last of Us and Barbie, with Hulu Japan also set to explore taking its own and Nippon TV's programming onto HBO Max abroad.
Full account
Warner Bros Discovery is to bring its HBO Max streaming service to Japan through tie-ups with Amazon's Prime Video and Hulu Japan, with the service due to go live from 1 October. The expansion is built on a broader partnership between Warner Bros Discovery and Nippon Television, the Japanese broadcaster that owns and operates Hulu Japan (a separate operation from the Disney-branded Hulu used elsewhere). Under the arrangement, HBO Max will sit as a distinct branded section inside both the Prime Video and Hulu Japan apps rather than functioning as a standalone service in the market.
The commercial terms differ by platform. Hulu Japan subscribers will have the HBO Max Standard Tier bundled into their current subscriptions automatically from October, with no extra charge. Prime Video customers, by contrast, will need to pay for HBO Max separately as an add-on, available at either Standard or Premium level. The deal also looks beyond simple distribution: Warner Bros Discovery and Nippon Television say they intend to examine carrying Nippon TV's and Hulu Japan's own domestic programming on HBO Max in other territories, extending Japanese content to an international audience.
At launch, Japanese subscribers will gain access to the Game of Thrones franchise, including House of the Dragon, the original series and the newer instalment A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, alongside DC Studios titles such as The Penguin, Peacemaker and Lanterns, plus The Last of Us, The White Lotus and Euphoria. October also brings the medical drama The Pitt, its companion comedy Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, and long-running sitcoms Friends and The Big Bang Theory, together with films including Barbie, One Battle After Another, and titles from the Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings and DC film franchises. The centrepiece of the push is a new HBO original television adaptation, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, which is scheduled to premiere around Christmas and is being positioned as a major draw given the franchise's popularity in Japan.
Executives from all three companies framed the move as mutually beneficial. James Gibbons of Warner Bros Discovery described it as broadening HBO Max's reach in Japan after encouraging engagement since its earlier, more limited presence there; Nippon Television's Fukuda Hiroyuki cast it as advancing two ambitions at once, bringing Warner content to Japanese audiences while opening the door for Japanese programming to travel abroad; and Hulu Japan's Dosaka Tadahisa linked the announcement to the platform's fifteenth anniversary and its ambition to be the leading domestic home for international series. The two source reports largely agree on the core details but differ in emphasis: one account, drawing on the companies' own statements, goes into more depth on subscription tiers, the full programming line-up and quotes from all three executives, while the other, from a trade publication, adds the historical context that HBO and HBO Max content had previously reached Japan only through a licensing deal with the platform U-Next, and is more explicit in noting that Hulu Japan is a distinct entity from the US-based, Disney-owned Hulu service.
Where outlets differ
From the full account, which is AI-written from the sources:
The trade-press account (Deadline) notes that HBO/HBO Max content was previously available in Japan only via a separate licensing deal with U-Next — a piece of background context the companies' own announcement does not mention.
Deadline explicitly flags that Hulu Japan is a separate company from the Disney-owned Hulu used in other markets, to avoid confusion; the other source assumes this distinction rather than spelling it out.
The fuller account includes quotes from all three executives (Warner Bros Discovery, Nippon Television and Hulu Japan) and ties the deal to Hulu Japan's 15th anniversary, plus detail on subscription tiers and pricing structure; Deadline's report is shorter, quoting only the Warner Bros Discovery executive and giving less detail on the tiering and bundling mechanics.
Explained simply
Warner Bros Discovery's streaming service HBO Max is expanding into Japan, but rather than launching its own app there, it will appear as branded sections inside two services people already use: Amazon's Prime Video and Hulu Japan. This is a change from the current setup, where WBD's shows and films are only available in Japan through a licensing deal with the local platform U-Next.
HBO Max carries WBD's television and film output, including series such as House of the Dragon, The Last of Us and The White Lotus, plus films like Barbie. Hulu Japan is a separate business from the US-owned Hulu, run instead by the broadcaster Nippon Television, and it already has its own subscriber base and local programming.
The move matters because it reflects a broader trend of international streaming players partnering with established local services rather than building their own audience from scratch, and it could mean far wider access to WBD's content for viewers in Japan than the previous licensing arrangement allowed.
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