Verizon may offer Netflix and Max as a combined $10 streaming bundle

Verizon is planning to offer its customers a discounted bundle of streaming services that includes the ad-supported tiers of both Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max. People “familiar with the situation” told The Wall Street Journal on Thursday that the bundle will cost $10 a month instead of the roughly $17 per month you’d pay for the services separately. 

It’s unusual for two rival streaming services to agree to a bundle, but there are benefits to doing so via distributors like Verizon, Comcast, Apple, and Amazon. Bundles can attract more customers to both streaming services, and reduce the number of people canceling their subscriptions when they are done watching a specific show. Earlier this week, Sowmyanarayan Sampath, chief executive of Verizon Consumer Group, said that the company’s Plus Play marketplace — the hub that centralizes content subscriptions for Verizon customers — has been instrumental in reducing defections, calling it “a smash hit among customers and great for our content partners with churn among our customers down 60-70% compared to the average.”

Verizon has previously offered Netflix in bundle packages before, but they didn’t include the streaming service’s $6.99 ad-supported tier which launched last year. This new offering would also essentially make Netflix free for Verizon customers who are already paying for Max’s $9.99 ad tier. It is not clear when the new bundled service is expected to launch, or what the arrangement is regarding the revenue split between Netflix, Warner Bros. Discovery, and Verizon. We have reached out to all three companies for comment and will update here if we hear back.