HBO Max finally comes to Amazon Fire TV, but not yet Roku

Max WarnerMedia Investor Day Presentation — (Image credit: Presley Ann/Getty Images for WarnerMedia)

HBO Max is finally headed to Amazon Fire TV, and it only took nearly six months.

WarnerMedia announced on Monday that HBO Max, its streaming service that launched in May, will at last be made available on Amazon Fire TV and on Fire tablets, Variety reports. The HBO Max app on Fire devices is set to launch on Nov. 17.

When HBO Max debuted back in May, a significant impediment for WarnerMedia was the fact that the new streaming service didn't have an app on Roku on Amazon devices, despite these being the two most popular streaming platforms, as noted by USA Today. Deals needed to be worked out between WarnerMedia and both companies, and months later, one with Amazon has been reached. According to Variety, "One of the key sticking points in the deal talks was that WarnerMedia wanted to remove legacy HBO as a channel from Amazon's Prime Video Channels offering — and the companies' pact lays the groundwork to do that."

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There had also been some confusion at launch about how HBO Max is actually different from the other HBO-related services, something WarnerMedia has since tried to clear up. To reiterate, HBO Max is a Netflix-type service offering a variety of content including what you can find on regular HBO as well as other movies and shows; among its exclusive offerings is every episode of Friends.

Roku users still remain out of luck, though, as no deal to bring HBO Max to Roku devices has been announced yet. With the Friends reunion special headed to the service at some point and apparently set to film in March, it remains to be seen whether an HBO Max app on Roku will be there for you in time.

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Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.