Max downgrades standard ad-free plan by removing 4K content

Not only are many streaming services getting more expensive, but they are also losing features along the way. On Thursday, Max began sending out emails to notify subscribers on its standard ad-free plan about some disappointing changes. Starting today, Max’s ad-free plan, which costs $15.99 per month, will no longer include 4K Ultra HD content. Max is also lowering the number of concurrent streams on the plan from 3 to 2.

That’s a fairly significant demotion for the legacy ad-free plan, which had its price increased from $14.99 to $15.99 per month less than a year ago. If you want 4K Ultra HD content on Max going forward, you’ll have to upgrade to Max’s new Ultimate Ad-Free plan, which launched during the transition from HBO Max and costs $19.99 per month.

Here’s what all of the Max plans and their pricing look like as of November 2:

• With Ads – $9.99/month or $99.99/year
  • Stream on 2 devices at once
  • Full HD 1080p
• Ad-Free – $15.99/month or $149.99/year
  • Stream on 2 devices at once
  • Full HD 1080p
  • 30 downloads to watch on the go
• Ultimate Ad-Free – $19.99/month or $199.99/year
  • Stream on 4 devices at once
  • 4K UHD with Dolby Atmos on select titles
  • 100 downloads to watch on the go

If you’re a current Max Ad-Free subscriber, you’ll have access to all of the plan’s features until your next billing date, on or after December 5.

“On your next billing date, on or after December 5, 2023, the price of your subscription will stay the same, but some of your plan features will change,” Max told subscribers in a message. “You can still stream all your favorite blockbuster movies, fresh originals and iconic series. Or even switch to the Ultimate Ad-Free plan to unlock more features.”

UPDATE | Max did reach out after we published this article to remind us these changes were announced in April alongside the rebranded service. At the time, Max said, “HBO Max subscribers will still have access to their current plan features for a minimum of six months.” That will be almost precisely how long subscribers were able to keep those features.