Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect HBO's June 2 announcement that HBO's original content will not include advertising

HBO Max will include ads; starting in June, the Warner Media-owned streaming service will cost $999 per month, 33% less than the standard $1499 per month But there is a big catch (or two) at hand

While most ad-supported streaming services integrate these commercials in a natural way - for Peacock and Paramount Plus, advertising is their way of life - HBO Max faces a more bizarre challenge, robbing subscribers And that feels like a problem big enough to wait until 2022 before I consider it

First, let me explain why HBO is finally getting into advertising, which, according to ComScore senior media analyst Paul Dergarabedian, "is a way for streamers to get more viewers and more subscribers And once they subscribe, it's kind of a set-it-and-forget-it thing"

HBO Max is also betting that these customers will be tempted to upgrade, he said Of course, "that's a win, too," he says

To be sure, advertising is a meaningful piece of the HBO Max pie; consider HBO Max in two parts: the HBO Original and Max The latter includes everything they brought to the table, including The Big Bang Theory and Friends And filling HBO Max with ads makes sense for half of Max's TV content, but not for HBO Originals That is why we are pleased that HBO has announced that, "Furthermore, we will not run ads during HBO programming"

HBO is walking a tightrope regarding where and when to run ads As someone who watches original WWE programming on Peacock, I can tell you that Peacock is manually creating ad breaks that were not there before

Dergarabedian agreed that this could be trouble and told me, "I think a large part of this is how integrated the ads are; I literally had to turn off streaming because the same three ads would repeat at 3 minutes, 5 minutes, 10 minutes and I literally had to turn off streaming because the same three ads would repeat for 3, 5, and 10 minutes It drove me off the platform"

WarnerMedia claimed at an upfront event last week that HBO Max features "the lightest ad load in the industry" Nevertheless, Warner is trying to innovate with advertising

In the HBO Max example, Pause Ads come into play While they may be easy to ignore in the moment, they remind one of Amazon's "Special Offers" - ads that appear on Kindle e-readers and Fire tablets that you have to pay to see

And there is another big asterisk in the ad-supported HBO Max It loses access to Warner Pictures' big-budget movies

Recent examples include "Godzilla vs Kong," and upcoming blockbusters like "Suicide Squad," "Space Jam 2," and "Dune" give me more reason to go to ad-free HBO Max

And I am not talking about HBO Max as an alternative to movie theaters To me, the big point here is the ability to re-watch new movies that you saw in theaters and liked

Anyone signing up for ad-free HBO Max should know that these movies are not available The app will probably give you the option to upgrade, but since these movies are one of HBO Max's key differentiators (unless you really like "Friends"), this is a tough choice

How does HBO Max really stand out when the likes of Netflix, Disney Plus, Hulu, Peacock, and Paramount Plus already have plenty of TV to watch? Sure, there are plenty of films from the Criterion Collection and Studio Ghibli, but how does that fit in with advertising?

Finally, let's talk about price HBO Max's ad-supported package is $999 per month However, HBO Max's ad-supported package is $999/month This is twice as much as the ad-supported Paramount Plus ($499, no live CBS coverage) and $4 more than Peacock and Hulu's $599/month ad-supported package

Personally, I like HBO Max's library better than any of its ad-supported competitors That's why I pay for ad-supported Peacock and Hulu (I'm not as annoyed by interruptions on those services) Those who don't like HBO Max's library enough to pay full price might prefer the lower investment of an ad-supported tier, the same price as Paramount Plus or Peacock's ad-free version This is a difficult request

This is made more difficult by the fact that none of the services does a good job of telling potential subscribers how many shows and movies they offer; Peacock touts "hundreds of movies" and "value TV along with sports and news"; Hulu boasts "thousands of shows and movies"

HBO Max is probably betting that people will see its content as more valuable That is why the entry-level price of $1499 is more expensive But would it be as attractive without big-budget movies and with ads that are not appropriate for HBO's programming? We will find out when Warner Media reveals its subscriber numbers

But for now, an ad-supported HBO Max doesn't seem very interesting as of today, and a bit more understandable as of 2022 By that time, HBO Max will no longer be available on the same day as movie theaters, so the difference in content available at the tier will be less noticeable

For more streaming device (and streaming service) recommendations, be sure to check out my guide If there is anything you would like to see covered in the streaming world, please email me at henrycasey@futurenetcom or leave a comment below