HBO Max Had More to Gain Than Roku to Lose
The inevitable has happened. Roku (NASDAQ: ROKU) has come to terms with AT&T's (NYSE: T) HBO Max. The fledgling premium streaming service is now available on Roku, the last of the major platforms that wasn't carrying HBO Max.
Thursday's debut of HBO Max on Roku came after what was reportedly months of negotiations, and this is good news for both parties. Roku is no longer at risk of losing any users because it's lacking access to an app that will only grow more popular in 2021. Roku shares were hitting all-time highs in Wednesday's after-hours trading following the news.
AT&T also comes out ahead. HBO Max now has one less barrier to succeeding, and a big one at that given Roku's 46 million active accounts. Both publicly traded companies are better off with a deal in place, but the stakes weren't the same. AT&T's HBO Max had a lot more to lose.
Source Fool.com
