For nearly three decades, ever since its first original drama Oz landed in 1997, HBO has been shorthand for prestige television. It’s the place that delivered The Wire, Succession, and a long list of series that shaped modern TV. When news broke that Netflix is set to acquire Warner Bros.—and with it, the network behind the forever popular The Sopranos—fans started to panic. Would the streaming giant flatten the brand that helped define the “golden age” of television? Would the broader streaming machine swallow the Home Box Office identity? Would Netflix enshittify HBO?
Netflix’s Co-CEO Ted Sarandos says no. Speaking at the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference (via Deadline), Sarandos pushed back on the idea that HBO is about to lose what makes it special. Instead, he framed the deal as an opportunity for the premium TV brand to sharpen its focus further. He explained to attendees:
