Back in 2023, Max announced something that was universally hated by the masses. If you wanted to watch your sports and news, you were going to pay an extra fee. Well, in a surprisingly consumer-friendly move, Max has canceled its extra fee for sports and news, and people are happy.
When the company first announced this fee, we’re sure that many folks reached for the “Cancel Subscription” button. Max said that it would tack on an extra $10/month to gain access to its Bleacher Report (B/R) in February 2024.
That’s not a typo, the fee was supposed to happen a year ago, but the company never pulled the trigger. People wondered when they’d look at their bill and see an extra $10. After a Bloomberg report in September that the fee was about to land, people were still waiting… and it never came.
After being radio-silent for months, Max announced that it canceled the extra fee for sports and news content
The company announced that people will still be able to access their sports and news content at no extra cost. So, people can breathe a sigh of relief.
In case you don’t know, B/R gives you access to more than 1,700 live games and events every year. The company has the rights to stream content from the NBA, MLB, NHL, NCAA, NASCAR, Roland-Garros, Big 12, BIG EAST, U.S. Soccer, Premier Cycling, and much more. However, Max won’t be able to stream NBA games after this season, as it will lose the rights.
In any case, this is great news for people who watch this content on the regular. With streaming prices going up just about every couple of months, it’s good to hear that a platform (especially a platform with a track record as tainted as Max) is sticking to the same price. The current conditions are pushing people to look for more free streaming services.
But, it’s not all good news
So, this story has a happy ending for only part of the audience. While the company won’t raise the price for the B/R content, it will remove it altogether for people on the ad-supported tier. That’s a bummer, but it seems to be the lesser of two evils. The ad-supported tier costs $9.99/month ($99.99/year), so if you don’t care about sports and news, that could be a good option.
However, if you can’t live without it, you can upgrade to the Standard plan which costs $16.99/month ($169.99/year) or the Premium plan which costs $20.99/month ($209.99/year). These tiers will retain the B/R content.
