Max Adds AI Component to Autoplay Video Previews on Homepage
Beginning this week, Max is adding an AI component to autoplay video previews on the homepage — the clips that start playing when a user hovers over a title.
The feature, which is designed to improve content discovery and will be available for all U.S. adult profiles across all subscription tiers on connected TV devices, comes after video previews first launched on the platform earlier this year.
However, users who count themselves among the many that strongly dislike autoplay video on streaming services will still be able to turn the feature off for video and audio from the settings and playback menu.
Additionally, WBD is launching a new in-house AI-assisted tool in the coming weeks that will be used to identify and suggest popular and recognizable short scenes from library content to be featured as previews. The tool will help recommend standout scenes for the Max team to then choose to use on the homepage.
The latest homepage update comes after Max launched an updated navigation menu back in January, which moved the Home, Series, Movies, HBO, B/R Sports, and CNN Max categories from the top of the page into the left side. It also introduced a “What’s New” navigation page showing content that recently arrived on the platform or is leaving soon and “Categories,” which allows users to browse by genre, brand, and thematic collections.
It also introduced a “Channels” feature in December, which allows subscribers to stream live feeds of HBO programming directly from the service’s app through simulcasts. Channels include HBO, HBO2, HBO Signature, HBO Comedy and HBO Zone.
Max will of course cease to be known as Max later this summer, when the name reverts back to HBO Max.
Additionally, Max is in the midst of rolling out its password sharing crackdown and will rebrand itself back to HBO Max this summer.
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