The new embodiment of HBO’s over the top HBO Max’s Mobile app, HBO Max May 27 on launched and shows that it has already attracted approximately 1.7 million downloads on the U.S. App Store and Google Play availability in its first 2 weeks of, HBO Max replaced the company’s past app, HBO Now, and has already surpassed that Mobile App’s past best day of installs.
On May 28 its launch, the after day, HBO Max hit almost 337,000 installs by first time mobile users. This is nearly double HBO Now’s peak number of about 172,000 installs, which occurred on April 15, 2019, the day after the final season premiere of HBO’s popular TV show, Game of Thrones.
Since its launch, HBO Max’s Mobile App has been installed by an average of approximately 121,000 first-time U.S. users per day. That is 572 percent more than HBO Now’s daily average of about 18,000 installs in the 14 days leading up to HBO Max’s launch.
HBO Breaks Its Own Record
The jump in new installs spurred by HBO Max’s debut led to the company’s best-ever month for first-time downloads of its OTT streaming app, with combined downloads of HBO Now and HBO Max totaling approximately in the month of May 1.6 million this was an increase of about 78 percent year-over-year from approximately 900,000 installs in May 2019. On its own, HBO Max achieved similar download numbers, reaching 1.7 million installs between May 27 and June 9. This is an increase of 591 percent from the 246,000 first-time installs the HBO Max’s Mobile App is estimated to have seen in the 14 days leading up to HBO Max’s launch.
Monthly Mobile Installs of HBO Now and HBO Max from January 2020 to May 2020
HBO Max’s explosive first week averaged 192,000 installs daily, and its second week hit about 30 percent of that with an average of 57,000 daily installs. This is comparable to the trajectory of Disney’s OTT mobile app, Disney+, which saw average daily installs during its second week hitting 29 percent of the installs from its launch week in November 2019.
HBO Max’s second-week average daily installs of 57,000 represent over 260 percent growth from the 16,000 average daily installs in the month of May leading up to the app’s launch on May 27.
Beyond Three Weeks
HBO Max’s launched in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has shifted user behavior and affected everything from health and fitness apps to mobile games. Off-screen, the pandemic has also impacted production and event schedules. However, HBO has announced that it has a whole slate of programming to come, including a Friends cast reunion and other original series and films lined up for the summer. As the company rolls out more content, it will be interesting to see how its new app will perform in the months to come.
