Amazon’s Prime Video is one of the largest video streaming platforms in the world with over 200 million users. The streaming service comes bundled with Amazon’s Prime Membership, which provides benefits such as free shipping, one-day deliveries, Prime Music, and much more.
Amazon has announced that they will soon introduce advertisements in Prime Video. The company says that Amazon has been compelled to this move, to keep its video streaming service sustainable in the long run.
Amazon Prime Video Will Soon Get Advertisements
In its official blog post, Amazon announced that the company will soon start introducing ads in Prime Video. This new change will begin in a phased manner in select markets, before a global release.
Amazon says that Prime Video will start showing advertisements between content, starting in early 2024. The process will begin in the United States first, and gradually expand to the United Kingdom, Germany, and Canada. Later in the year; France, Mexico, Italy, Spain, and Australia will also be added to the list.
As per Amazon, ads in Prime Video will be less frequent as compared to the volume of advertisements on TV. The company also says that the ads will be less intrusive, for maintaining a good video streaming experience. Amazon will also send emails to notify users about this change, weeks before the implementation.
No changes will be made to the shipping benefits of Amazon Prime. Customers can continue to avail of free shipping, one-day or same-day deliveries, early access to sales, etc. with their Prime Membership.
Ad-Free Prime Video Will Be Priced Higher
Amazon also said that the company will introduce an ad-free tier for Prime Video, which will cost $2.99 extra per month in addition to the Prime Membership cost. For reference, Amazon’s Prime Membership costs $14.99 per month in the US, which reflects that the ad-free tier will cost you 20% extra.
While buying the Prime Membership, Amazon will give you the option to select between the with-ads or ad-free tier. Apart from the video streaming, other benefits will remain the same across both tiers of the membership.
No Ads in Prime Video in India, Atleast for Now
Amazon has not included India in the list of markets where they will introduce ads in Prime Video. However, the company has only shared its plans up to 2024, for this new change in its video streaming service.
It is possible that Amazon may introduce ads in Prime Video in the Indian market post-2025. But for now, Indian users can cherish the contents of Prime Video without worrying about advertisements.
A few months back, Netflix introduced an ad-friendly plan at a lower price to increase its user base. Other streaming services such as Sony LIV and Disney+Hotstar have been showing ads in paid memberships for a long time now. It looks like streaming services have to rely on ad revenue to keep their platform sustainable.
Currently, Amazon Prime membership is currently priced at Rs 1499 in India. Amazon also has a monthly subscription for Rs 299 and a quarterly plan for Rs 599.
