Amazon Prime Video now features ‘restricted ad’ streaming content.

Starting early next year, customers in the UK, Germany, and the US will have the choice to pay extra for an ad-free service.

Starting early next year, Amazon Prime Video subscribers in the UK, Germany, and the US will encounter “limited advertisements” in films and TV shows, unless they opt for an ad-free experience by paying an additional £2.99. This change will be implemented after 5 February for the UK and Germany, and from 29 January for US users. In contrast to competitors like Netflix and Disney, who offer cheaper ad-supported packages, Amazon’s ad-supported tier is not less expensive, requiring users to pay extra for an ad-free viewing experience. The shift in business models among major streaming companies, including the introduction of ad tiers, price increases, and content spending cuts, is driven by the need to transform loss-making services into profitable ones amid a post-pandemic slowdown in subscriber growth.

In an email addressed to Prime Video members, Amazon stated that the decision would enable the company to “sustain investments in compelling content and extend these investments over an extended period.” Amazon assured subscribers that the introduction of ads would be restrained, emphasizing that the content would have “significantly fewer ads compared to ad-supported TV channels and other streaming providers.”

Earlier this year, Amazon disclosed its intention to join competitors in introducing advertising in various countries, including the UK, US, Germany, and Canada. The current cost of Amazon’s Prime subscription, encompassing music and video streaming services along with benefits such as free and swift package delivery, remains at £8.99 per month in the UK. Amazon confirmed that the service’s price would remain unchanged next year, except for those who choose to pay an additional fee for the ad-free option.

In late 2022, Netflix introduced its ad-supported tier and has since revealed that around 15 million global customers have enrolled in this service. The streaming platform provides the basic ad-supported tier at a monthly fee of £4.99, representing a significant decrease when compared to the £10.99 cost of its standard ad-free package.

Disney+ offers its service with ads at a monthly rate of £4.99, introduced in the UK in August, or provides a standard ad-free package at £7.99.