WarnerMedia revealed the name of its new streaming service, HBO Max, and said it will lay claim to exclusive streaming rights to the hit sitcom&nbsp;Friends, a blow to rival Netflix.



The service, which launches commercially in the spring of 2020, will be anchored in HBO’s premium content, as the name implies. But it also will feature exclusive originals, such as a one-hour thriller series starring&nbsp;The Big Bang Theory’s&nbsp;Kaley Cuoco, and a ten-episode romantic anthology series featuring&nbsp;Pitch Perfect’s&nbsp;Anna Kendrick.



Though original programming may attract subscribers, popular shows likeFriends&nbsp;have the enduring, comfort-food appeal of the familiar. HBO Max will be home to all 236 episodes of&nbsp;Friends,&nbsp;the long-running situation comedy about a group of friends in Manhattan that debuted in 1994 but remains popular long after the last episode aired on NBC in 2004. Netflix paid a reported $100 million last December to keep Ross, Rachel and the rest of the crew on for another year.



WarnerMedia didn’t reveal pricing for Max. The network’s stand-alone subscription streaming service, HBO Now, costs $15, more than Netflix’s standard plan ($12.99) and the recently announced Disney+ streaming service ($6.99). It declined&nbsp;Forbes’&nbsp;request for an interview.



The announcement follows a tumultuous period at WarnerMedia, as AT&amp;T entertainment division&#8217;s chief executive, John Stankey, reorganized business units and installed new leadership.



Eager to lay claim to a corner of the rapidly evolving streaming media landscape, Stankey announced plans last fall to launch a three-tiered service, with a variety of pricing and content offerings. He promised the service would debut in “beta” by the end of 2019—matching the planned launches of the Walt Disney Co.’s streaming service and the anticipated debut of Apple TV+. The newly christened HBO Max will exist alongside HBO Now and HBO Go, the streaming service offered free to the network’s TV subscribers.



Under the details made public today, HBO Max will feature seven original series and draw from HBO’s programming slate, which includes an adaptation of Stephen King’s mystery,&nbsp;The Outsider,&nbsp;starring Ben Mendelsohn;&nbsp;Lovecraft Country,&nbsp;a horror series based on a novel by Matt Ruff, and executive produced by Jordan Peele and J.J. Abrams; and&nbsp;The Undoing,&nbsp;a psychological thriller from noted television producer David E. Kelley, starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Grant.



The forthcoming service will also draw from Warner Bros. Television’s extensive library, claiming popular past shows like&nbsp;The Fresh Prince of Bel Air&nbsp;and&nbsp;Pretty Little Liars.&nbsp;It will also get dibs on the new shows Warner TV produces for The CW network, including the forthcoming DC Entertainment series&nbsp;Batwoman.



WarnerMedia said HBO Max reached exclusive deals with Hollywood producer Greg Berlanti (The Flash, Supergirl, Arrow) and award-winning actress and producer Reese Witherspoon. Berlanti will produce an initial four movies focused in the young adult space, while Witherspoon&#8217;s Hello Sunshine will produce at least two films.



-Dawn Chmielewski; Forbes Staff

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Netflix Rival HBO Max To Launch Next Year With ‘Friends’

Making an unforgettable movie is not the only requirement to win the prestigious best picture Oscar. Add millions of dollars for TV and digital ads, plus actors’ travel, hair and makeup for events to promote their work on the busy film campaign trail. 



If the race is close, as it is heading into Sunday’s awards ceremony, studios must dig deeper to gain an edge with the roughly 8,000 voters in the Academy for Motion Picture Arts &amp; Sciences.



Netflix Inc and AT&amp;T Inc’s Warner Bros. are among the distributors opening their checkbooks to try to land the most-coveted golden statuette.



“You have to spend money,” said Matthew Belloni, editorial director at The Hollywood Reporter. “You have to shake hands. You have to have a message for your movie.”



“It’s about working the people out there and getting the academy to know you and to believe in your film,” he added.



For the eventual winner, the investment will pay off. A best picture trophy brings in extra box office dollars, plus cachet to help attract A-listers for future projects.



So from December through late February, actors, directors, producers and writers attend a heavy schedule of lunches, screenings, cocktail receptions and panel discussions, crisscrossing the country to get in front of voters in the industry hubs of New York and Los Angeles.



Aside from the movie’s stars, studios recruit A-list fans to host events, such as a “Roma” screening with Angelina Jolie, part of Netflix’s push to secure the first best picture award for a streaming service.



The “Roma” publicity campaign cost roughly $25 million, according to estimates from Hollywood publication Variety. The tab for Warner Bros.’ “A Star is Born” was just under $20 million, Variety said.



Much of that spending was dedicated to TV commercials, plus online ads on Hollywood-oriented news sites or Facebook. Some ads also are aimed at encouraging consumers to see the films.



Part of the Warner Bros. campaign involved covering a Sunset Strip billboard with a picture of Ally, Lady Gaga’s “A Star is Born” character. The signage is a replica of one seen in the film and looks like a promotion for the fictional star.



Studios also are trying out new experiences, said Marc Becker, chief executive of The Tangent Agency, which works with Hollywood studios on marketing campaigns. Netflix, for example, put together an exhibition of “Roma” costumes and props.



“They have always wined and dined people,” Becker said of awards campaigners, “but now they are immersing them even more in the world of the properties.”



Other films in the best-picture race are “Green Book” and “BlacKkKlansman” from Comcast Corp, 21st Century Fox’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “The Favourite,” Annapurna Pictures’ “Vice,” and Walt Disney Co’s “Black Panther.”



Disney’s campaign elevated “Black Panther” from superhero tale to an important cinematic milestone for its celebration of black culture, Belloni said.



“They’ve successfully reintroduced this comic book movie as a very serious artistic endeavor,” he said, “and they’ve been rewarded for that.” -Reuters



-Lisa Richwine; Additional reporting by Rollo Ross

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Netflix Rival HBO Max To Launch Next Year With ‘Friends’

Want To Win An Oscar? Spend Millions On The Film Campaign Trail