HBO content will remain on Sky in New Zealand, after the pay-tv provider inked a new deal with Warner Bros. Discovery.
The multi-year agreement means Sky has secured the rights to HBO, MAX originals, Warner Bros. movies and eight channels including Discovery, Animal Planet and CNN international.
"Sky's focus is ensuring audiences have access to the content they love in ways that work best for them," said Sky Chief Executive Sophie Moloney in a statement.
"With that in mind, we're thrilled that this new deal also has optionality at its core, giving us the flexibility to continue entertaining audiences across multiple platforms in the years ahead."
Hit HBO shows like The Last of Us, Succession and The White Lotus are a key draw card for Sky's Neon streaming service, but the deal does not prevent Warner Bros. Discovery - which owns Newshub -from launching its own streaming platform Max in New Zealand.
"The deal provides optionality for the future launch of Max in New Zealand, including a provision to retail Max on Sky platforms. We have no specific details for the New Zealand launch at this stage," a Warner Bros. Discovery spokesperson told Newshub.
Warner Bros. Discovery Western Pacific President James Gibbons said the company's partnership with Sky has "seen great success and growth over the years".
"As we look to build scale across our diverse portfolio locally, we look forward to continuing to work with Sky as a key partner in bringing Kiwis our world-class storytelling, brands and franchises," said Gibbons.
The eight channels included in the deal are Discovery, Discovery Turbo, Living Channel, TLC, ID, Animal Planet, Cartoon Network and CNN International.
