Prime Video will begin including ads on its platform on January 29, 2024, The Verge is reporting. However, the popular streaming platform will also offer subscribers an ad-free option for an extra $2.99 per month in the U.S. Customers can pre-register for the monthly ad-free option but won’t be billed until the launch of the ad pay tier next month.
Amazon Prime Video announced in September that it would be introducing ads to its streaming service. At the time, it didn’t specify when the new ad-supported pay tier would be rolled out.
Prime Video first announced that it would introduce the ad pay tier next month when it sent subscribers an email on Tuesday. The streaming service’s email, which includes the details, reads:
Dear Prime member,
We are writing to you today about an upcoming change to your Prime Video experience. 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. 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.
Prime is a very compelling value. Prime members enjoy a wide range of shopping, savings, and entertainment benefits, including:
– More than 300 million items are available with free Prime shipping and tens of millions of the most popular items are available with free Same-Day or One-Day Delivery.
– Access to exclusive and broad streaming video content (including Prime Video exclusives like The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, Citadel, The Wheel of Time and The Summer I Turned Pretty, as well as blockbuster movies such as Air, Creed III, Dungeons & Dragons, Candy Cane Lane with Eddie Murphy and exclusive live sports including NFL Thursday Night Football).
– Access to Prime Video Channels, which provides an unmatched selection of subscription channels like Max, Paramount+ with SHOWTIME, BET+, MGM+, ViX+, Crunchyroll, PBS KIDS, NBA League Pass, MLB.TV, and STARZ—with no extra apps to download, and no cable required. Customers only pay for the ones they want, and can cancel anytime.
– The ability to use your Prime shopping benefits—like fast, free delivery, a seamless checkout experience, 24/7 live chat support, and hassle-free returns—on online stores beyond Amazon.com with Buy with Prime.
– Exclusive deals and shopping events like Prime Day.
– Ad-free listening of 100 million songs and millions of podcast episodes with Amazon Music.
– Prescription medications as low as $1 per month and fast, free shipping from Amazon Pharmacy.
– Access to unlimited eligible generic prescription medications for only $5 per month (including free shipping) with RxPass from Amazon Pharmacy.
– High-quality health care from One Medical for only $9 per month (or $99 annually), with the option to add up to five additional memberships for the family for only $6 per month (or $66 annually) each.
– Free two-hour Fresh grocery delivery on orders over $100 (and delivery charges between $6.95 to $9.95 for orders less than $100), and in-store savings on select groceries at Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods Market stores across the U.S.
– Unlimited photo storage with Amazon Photos.
– Gaming benefits with Prime Gaming.
– More than 3,000 books and magazines with Prime Reading.
– A free, one-year Grubhub+ membership trial valued at $120 per year, offering unlimited $0 delivery fees on orders over $12.
And, you can expect additional features and programs added in the future for our Prime members.
As mentioned above, no action is required from you. If you wish to sign up for the ad-free option, you can click here. And, as always, if you have questions about your Prime membership, you can manage your account here.
Thank you for being a valued member of Amazon Prime.
Sincerely,
The Amazon Prime team
Ads will not be included in content that is purchased or rented on Amazon Prime. Live events, like sports, already include advertising and will continue to do so.
Ad-free programming for many countries other than the U.S. will be announced at a later time. However, besides the U.S., ads will also begin rolling out in the U.K., Germany and Canada on the same day, January 29. They will be followed by France, Italy, Spain, Mexico and Australia later in the year.
The new ad pay tier update from Prime Video is one of many shifts that have been deemed unwelcome by users. However, it’s not the only streamer ro change its model.
Last year, Netflix also launched an ad-supported plan as its current lowest pay tier. The option offers an alternative, more affordable cost compared to its next pay tier, the $15.49 per month plan.
However, there was also criticism to the change. The ad-supported tier removed some of Netflix’s more popular show options for subscribers who chose that plan.
The premium streaming service Max (formerly HBO Max) also offers an ad-supported option as its lowest pay tier. The plan is currently $9.99 per month.
A Prime Video subscription currently costs $8.99 per month. Amazon Prime users who pay $14.99 per month also get Prime Video included in their subscription.
In addition to adding ad-supported options, streaming services like Prime Video have been increasing their overall prices over the last several years. Earlier this year, Disney+ and Hulu increased their pay tiers, some by significant amounts. Disney+’s updated prices this year came after it had already increased its prices in December 2022. The cost of the service is now $6 more expensive than it was in November 2022.
Other streaming services, including Peacock and Hulu, also have both ad and ad-free options. Apple TV+ remains the only major streaming platform to have a purely subscription-based model.
Subscribers to Prime Video, which originated in 2011, may stay loyal to the streamer, however; besides the series listed in the email sent by its executives, it’s also home to such popular original shows as Reacher, Invincible and The Boys.