Prime Video Confirms Ads Are Coming in January 2024
Commercials are coming to Prime Video on Monday, January 29, 2024, starting with subscribers in the U.S., U.K., Canada, and Germany.
Prime Video first announced that ads would be coming to the streaming service back in September and has now officially confirmed the start date. According to Deadline, the announcement was made in a letter to subscribers, which noted the “limited advertisements” would allow the service “to continue investing in compelling content and keep increasing that investment over a long period of time.”
The ads are expected to land on Prime Video in France, Italy, Spain, Mexico, and Australia later in 2024.
There are a couple of stipulations, which include no ads on content that is purchased or rented and no ad rollout at all for customers in Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Mariana Islands.
(Credit: Prime Video)
“Starting January 29, Prime Video movies and TV shows will include limited advertisements. This will allow us to continue investing in compelling content and keep increasing that investment over a long period of time,” reads the letter, per Deadline.
It continues, “We aim to have meaningfully fewer ads than linear TV and other streaming TV providers. No action is required from you, and there is no change to the current price of your Prime membership. We will also offer a new ad-free option for an additional $2.99 per month that you can sign up for here.”
The dual subscription-ad model has now become the norm, with Disney+ and Netflix recently introducing ad tiers. Only Apple TV+ remains a major streamer with no ad tier.
Amazon has gone heavy on its advertising push in recent years, notably through its ad-supported Prime Video sibling platforms, such as Freevee and Twitch, as well as its venture into live sports.
Speaking about the rise in ad-supported streamers earlier this year, David Cohen, CEO of the Interactive Advertising Bureau, told The Hollywood Reporter, “As advertisers continue to look for high-quality content environments for their brands, they will inevitably be driven to these streaming services, which are aggregating larger and larger audiences with personalized content and ad experiences.”
“Historically, subscription-video-on-demand platforms have delivered stronger profit margins. However, as the ad-supported streaming business grows, that dynamic is evolving,” he continued. “Ad-supported streaming provides consumers more options and provides streamers more levers to pull in the quest for profitability.”
Prime Video airs a variety of original shows, including The Wheel of Time, The Boys, Reacher, Outer Range, Harlem, The Devil’s Hour, and many more.
