“Crave to Stream HBO’s Harry Potter Series in Canada”

Canadian viewers eagerly anticipating HBO’s upcoming adaptation of the beloved series Harry Potter, scheduled to debut in the early months of the following year, will be able to enjoy it via the Crave platform in Canada.

The future of Crave’s exclusive rights to HBO content, including Harry Potter, The White Lotus, as well as the anticipated final seasons of The Last of Us and House of the Dragon, remains uncertain following the announcement of Paramount Skydance’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of HBO and HBO Max, in a multi-billion dollar deal awaiting regulatory approval expected by year-end.

The potential impact on existing agreements between Warner Bros. Discovery and Canadian broadcasters and streaming services like Crave, as well as the likelihood of Canadian audiences needing to subscribe to alternative platforms for content access, remains unclear.

Furthermore, the consolidation could have wide-ranging implications for the streaming landscape in Canada, with Paramount’s streaming services, Paramount+ and Pluto TV, already established in the country.

Paramount Skydance’s CEO David Ellison expressed intentions to merge these platforms with HBO Max to create a unified streaming service, aiming to enhance competitiveness in the industry, as reported by The Guardian.

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What will happen to the shows you Crave?

Since entering a licensing agreement with Warner Media (formerly owned by AT&T) in 2019, Crave has been the platform for HBO and HBO Max content in Canada. Subsequent renewals and expansions of this deal in 2023 and 2024, following the Warner Bros. Discovery merger, have solidified Crave’s position as the home for HBO and HBO Max content for the foreseeable future, according to statements provided by Bell Media representatives.

The exact duration of the current arrangement remains unspecified.

In communications with Broadcast Dialogue and The Hollywood Reporter earlier this week, Bell Media reaffirmed that HBO and HBO Max content will continue to be available on Crave for an extended period.