The Brief – Tuesday 10 February – HBO Max launching in UK, Reach rolls out paywall, NewsGuard files lawsuit

📺 Warner Bros Discovery’s streaming service HBO Max is launching in the UK and Ireland on 26 March. It will launch with five tiers, including two ad-supported tiers, two premium tiers, and a plan that includes TNT Sports. Prices range from £4.99/month to £30.99/month. (Warner Bros Discovery)

🎪 Immediate has launched a new experiential agency, dubbed IX. It will specialise in co-branded events, community events, pop-ups and road shows. (Immediate)

📰 The rollout of Reach’s paid subscription offering has been expanded to three more websites: The Daily Record, Wales Online, and Leicestershire Live. National daily The Express is expected to be next in line, followed by Newcastle’s Chronicle Live. (HoldtheFrontPage)

🔇 Fans watching the Milan Cortina Winter Olympic Games opening ceremony accused US broadcaster NBC of appearing to mute the audio of the crowd when it audibly booed US Vice President JD Vance. NBC denied editing the audio. (The Guardian)

⚖️ NewsGuard, a company that attempts to rate the trustworthiness of online news providers, has filed a lawsuit against the US Federal Trade Commission, which has been probing allegations of advertising “boycotts” against conservative media websites. NewsGuard alleges the investigation amounts to retaliation for the company exercising its freedom of speech. (Bloomberg)

📻 News UK has written to regulator Ofcom to raise concerns about a planned spin-off of BBC’s Radio 6 Music. The media group said the proposed 24-hour stream, dedicated to indie pop and rock from the 1980s to the 2010s, lacked distinctiveness and posed a risk to Virgin Radio. (The Telegraph)

🎼 YouTube Music has begun rolling out a premium paywall for users to access song lyrics. (9to5Google)