Warner Bros. Discovered It Can’t Be Everything
Large conglomerates attempt to be every kind of entertainment company at once, but then struggle to do much of it particularly well.
The entertainment landscape needs some pruning.
Photographer: Victor J. Blue/BloombergIn what is quickly becoming a pattern, Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. is making headlines for taking a mulligan. Less than a month after reversing its inexplicable 2023 decision to drop the valuable HBO branding from its streaming service, HBO Max, the entertainment conglomerate is following up on its three-year-old merger of two separate companies by ... splitting them into two separate companies.
The specifics of this and similar recent shake-ups make clear a troubling trend: Media giants attempt to be every kind of entertainment company at once and then struggle to do much of it particularly well. Ultimately, the audience is left with the short end of the stick.