Warner Bros. Discovery will launch HBO Max in New Zealand on June 16 through a distribution deal with Prime Video, giving Kiwi subscribers access to the streamer’s full content library without requiring an Amazon Prime membership.
The service will be available via two monthly subscription tiers — Standard and Premium — with a promotional launch offer reducing prices to NZ$10.99 and NZ$15.99 respectively for the first six months for anyone who signs up before July 16. After the introductory period, standard pricing rises to $15.99 and $20.99 per month.
The timing is deliberate. The launch arrives less than a week before Season 3 of House of the Dragon drops, one of the biggest TV premieres of the year, with the DC series Lanterns, Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, and the highly anticipated Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone television series also coming to the platform.
HBO Max becomes Prime Video’s 26th subscription channel in New Zealand, joining partners including Apple TV+, Lionsgate+, Hayu, Crunchyroll, and beIN Sports.
The deal reshapes New Zealand’s streaming landscape and deals a significant blow to Sky New Zealand, which previously held the exclusive distribution rights to HBO content through its Neon platform. Sky’s dedicated HBO channel will shut down on June 16, and HBO content on Neon — including titles subscribers have downloaded — will disappear at the same time. HBO Max shows had occupied the full top five most popular shows on Neon as recently as last month, underscoring how central the content was to the platform’s appeal.
Investment analyst Benjamin Crozier of Forsyth Barr said the loss of the content deal was likely to be negative for Sky, though he noted the arrangement had been costly because Sky was required to take all HBO content rather than selecting titles based on viewer demand. He said savings from the terminated contract would likely be reinvested in content from other studios, but that it would take time before the full impact on Neon became clear.
Sky has responded by launching a new Sky Drama channel and refreshing Neon’s branding, though it has not reduced subscription prices.
For Warner Bros. Discovery, the New Zealand entry continues a rapid global expansion. Following the successful Australian launch in 2025 and rollouts in Germany, Italy, the UK, and Ireland earlier this year, New Zealand represents the next wave of HBO Max’s international push. WBD Australia and New Zealand managing director Michael Brooks said the platform was arriving off the back of a strong awards season, with its biggest content moment — the Harry Potter series premiere — still ahead at Christmas.
Shonali Bedi, Head of Strategy, Partnerships and Insights, APAC at Warner Bros. Discovery, said the Prime Video partnership in New Zealand extends an arrangement that has already proven successful in Australia.
