Prime Video just copied Netflix and Disney+ in the worst possible way with an unpopular new product. An optional change… assuming you pull out your credit card.
We’ve mentioned it before, but SVOD platforms like Netflix and Disney+ are still striving to achieve profitability with their model. And this affects all market services, including Amazon’s Prime Video. One direct way to achieve their goals is to increase subscription prices. But lately we’ve also been seeing a flood of advertising that’s very reminiscent of linear television. A novelty that subscribers would be happy to do without…
A hidden price increase for the Prime Video subscription
To increase revenue from their subscriptions, Netflix and Disney+ have introduced offers with advertising… but cheaper? Well no! Rather, it is a disguised price increase that forces users to upgrade by paying more each month. And unfortunately, Prime Video has chosen to reproduce this model. From this Tuesday, April 9, 2024, you are obliged to watch commercials lasting between 15 and 60 seconds and with a total duration of no more than three and a half minutes per hour.
“Starting April 9, 2024, Prime Video movies and series will contain limited advertising. This allows us to continue investing in attractive content and increase our investments in the long term to maintain the quality and quantity of content on Prime Video.
If you agree to see these ads, your subscription will not change. This means you will always be charged $6.99 per month or $69.99. On the other hand, if you hate commercial breaks and don’t want them to interfere with watching your movies and series, you’ll have to pay to remove them. At Amazon you can remove ads from Prime Video content for $1.99 per month. A tax added to the basic subscription totaling $8.98 per month.
Farewell to Dolby Atmos and Dolby Vision?
Another change could well upset Prime Video subscribers. In the United States the newspaper Forbes had a very unpleasant surprise. With the classic subscription for $6.99 it is no longer possible to watch films or series in Dolby Atmos and/or Dolby Atmos. This is not just a temporary error, but rather a development desired by Amazon for its video streaming offering. “Since publishing this article, Amazon Prime Video has confirmed to me that it was aware of the removal of Dolby Vision and Dolby Vision from the basic subscription. It wasn’t a technical error.” explained the magazine. There is still no announcement on this topic for France.
