Next year, Amazon Prime Video is stepping into the ad game, following suit with other streaming services. They’re not just stopping there—brace for a higher-priced, ad-free tier, too. The industry’s feeling the subscriber growth pinch post-pandemic, and Amazon’s making moves. Ads will hit the screens in the U.S., the UK, Germany, and Canada in early 2024, with France, Italy, Spain, Mexico, and Australia catching up later in the year. Changes are on the horizon for your Prime Video experience!
What’s new in Amazon Prime?
In the U.S., Amazon’s new ad-free tier will set you back an extra $2.99 per month, tacked onto the existing $14.99 monthly Prime subscription or $139 annual fee. International pricing details are still in the pipeline, according to the company.
Taking a cue from Netflix and Disney, Amazon is diving into the ad revenue game, aiming to offset the sluggish growth in subscriber numbers. However, ad-supported plans have differed from the rocket boosters they hoped for. Netflix, for instance, ditched its basic commercial-free plan in the U.S. and U.K. to amp up tier subscriptions, while Disney took the route of hiking prices for its ad-free tiers. The streaming wars are evolving!
A new experience with Prime Video
Amazon isn’t holding back on ads during live events like the NFL’s Thursday Night Football, even if you’re rocking the ad-free plan you paid for, the company clarified.
They promise fewer ads than your typical TV experience and other streaming services. Good news for your wallet: Amazon assures no price hikes for the current Prime membership plan in 2024.
While the e-commerce giant doesn’t spill the beans on exact Prime membership numbers, Insider Intelligence takes a swing, estimating Amazon Prime as the third-biggest video-streaming player in the U.S. with a whopping 157.3 million subscribers, trailing only YouTube and Netflix.
After a couple of lackluster earnings reports, Amazon bounced back in August with better-than-expected sales growth and profit, thanks to a boost in e-commerce and cloud computing—the power duo driving their success.
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