Amazon to Introduce Ads for Prime Video Streaming

Customers in the UK, US, Germany and Canada will start to see ads from early 2024, but they can avoid them by paying more for an “ad-free” option.

Amazon will roll out an “ad-free” subscription tier for an extra $2.99 (£2.44) per month for Prime subscribers in the United States. Pricing for other countries will be announced at a later date, Amazon said.

Other territories including France, Italy, Spain, Mexico and Australia will see adverts on Prime Video from later in 2024. It follows similar moves by rivals including Disney+ and Netflix to introduce advertising tiers.

At the moment, a Prime subscription, which includes free one-day delivery on goods as well as access to its streaming service, costs £8.99 per month, or £95 a year, in the UK. Amazon said the move would help it “continue investing in compelling content and keep increasing that investment over a long period of time.”

The company said it aimed to have “meaningfully fewer ads than linear TV and other streaming TV providers.” Prime Video Originals include The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, The Boys, Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, Citadel, Clarkson’s Farm and The Grand Tour.