The most popular series on HBO Max in its first two months of existence is one that last aired a new episode when George W. Bush was president. We’re talking about “Friends.”
The WarnerMedia streaming service said Monday that former NBC sitcom “Friends” was the service’s most-watched program, with Max original “Love Life” coming in at No. 2. Fellow former sitcom “The Big Bang Theory” was the third-most watched program, according to WarnerMedia.
HBO Max did not provide any specific viewership numbers, but the news gives at least an idea of what people are watching on the service.
HBO Max garnered 4.1 million subscribers after its first full month since launching on May 27, but the service is at an impasse with the two most-used streaming platforms in the country, Roku and Amazon Fire TV. The standoff illustrates the evolving fight between those who make the content and those who distribute it — a new-age carriage dispute, essentially, like the ones TV providers such as Dish and Comcast routinely engage in with network conglomerates like Disney and CBS.
WarnerMedia also said that 23% of its subscribers fell between the ages of 18 and 24, which it claims is much lower than the average age for an HBO subscriber. The company added that it’s seeing 70% more time spent on HBO Max vs. HBO Now.