02 Nov How HBO Max and Discovery+ Use Human Curators, Not Algorithms, to Promote Content [TheWrap Pro]
BY ADAM CHITWOOD
November 2, 2022 | One of the biggest questions consumers have when it comes to the variety of streaming services is: How do I find something to watch? For Halloween, HBO Max and Discovery+ bypassed the usual use of algorithms and leaned into a human-driven curation of specific content — not algorithms! — to drive subscribers to movies and shows they’d be most likely to enjoy. And while the subscriber bases for both streaming services exhibit distinctly different behaviors, the strategy that’s driving programming for both right now will come in handy when they’re combined into a single streaming service in 2023.
“A lot of thought goes into it,” Lisa Holme, SVP of Content Strategy, Merchandising and Podcasts at Warner Bros. Discovery told TheWrap about merchandising Halloween content on HBO Max and Discovery+, which in 2021 saw the launch of three interactive doors on HBO Max that chose a movie for a consumer based on which door they picked: “Not Scary at All,” “Scary” and “Very Scary.”
This year saw the expansion of this kind of curated choice for subscribers with an interactive series of tarot cards, each revealing a different film from a horror sub-genre. Select “The Fool” and you got a title related to horror comedies; choose “The Executioner” and you got a slasher; pick “The Magician” and you’d find a recommendation related to fantasy and magic.
Read more on TheWrap Pro.