Amazon Launches Monthly Prime & Monthly Prime Video

[tomsem]

Amazon Prime Video does not have the same breadth of content as Netflix, but unlike the latter you can also purchase and rent the same videos you'd find on iTunes or Google Play, and as of a couple of months ago, you can add subscriptions to Showtime, Starz, Quello, and dozens of other sources, and manage all of that with a single account/playlist (I'd like to see them add ability to create separate playlists like Netflix). The mobile apps let you download most of this content for offline viewing as well (unlike Netflix). So it is very convenient.

I think all of the apps (and Fire TV) let you select the streaming/download format (SD/HD/4K where applicable). When purchasing, that can affect the price as well (we usually select SD to save a bit, the quality seems indistinguishable).

[Polarpenguin]

Originally Posted by Cosimo

I think the stand-alone streaming service will be a huge fail based on the quality of programs / movies they currently offer.

Here in the UK we've had the stand alone monthly instant video option for awhile, so presumably it works.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

But with added content, Amazon has spun Prime Video into a major video streaming service capable of going head-to-head with Netflix and Hulu.

Now that it's being offered as a monthly subscription, I just don't see them continuing to offer it as one of the many "freebies" you get with an annual Prime membership.

I see it the other way around: the standalone is a teaser for the upsell to full Prime. As in, "the video service alone costs $8 a month--might as well sign up for full Prime and get the ebooks, music, and free shipping."

Same thing with the monthly Prime: it auto bills every month so, while many will sign up just for the holidays and, maybe, Prime Day, many will stick and use it as a way to pay by installment.

They're tricky folks.
One free month, second month $10.99... when it's time to cancel many will be hooked.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by tomsem

Amazon Prime Video does not have the same breadth of content as Netflix, but unlike the latter you can also purchase and rent the same videos you'd find on iTunes or Google Play, and as of a couple of months ago, you can add subscriptions to Showtime, Starz, Quello, and dozens of other sources, and manage all of that with a single account/playlist (I'd like to see them add ability to create separate playlists like Netflix). The mobile apps let you download most of this content for offline viewing as well (unlike Netflix). So it is very convenient.

I think all of the apps (and Fire TV) let you select the streaming/download format (SD/HD/4K where applicable). When purchasing, that can affect the price as well (we usually select SD to save a bit, the quality seems indistinguishable).

There's also rumors they're working on a Sling TV type service to let you add live streaming and on-demand cable channels. Lots of outfits are working on that but Amazon got Showtime and Starz to sign up. It's a start.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

I see it the other way around: the standalone is a teaser for the upsell to full Prime. As in, "the video service alone costs $8 a month--might as well sign up for full Prime and get the ebooks, music, and free shipping."

Same thing with the monthly Prime: it auto bills every month so, while many will sign up just for the holidays and, maybe, Prime Day, many will stick and use it as a way to pay by installment.

They're tricky folks.
One free month, second month $10.99... when it's time to cancel many will be hooked.

I can see that; but my cynical side has me looking over my shoulder ever so wary of the Jeff

[Conan46]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

I can see that; but my cynical side has me looking over my shoulder ever so wary of the Jeff

I don't think there is any doubt Amazon is trying to leverage more people into a full Prime membership. They aren't exactly pushing the monthly payments, you have to go looking for it. And when you find it, "Why not pay just $2 a month more for full Prime? Better yet, save 25% off and get your membership for just $99 a year!"
The upside is for people like me who really will subscribe for just a few months to video, watch what I want, then drop it. In the past when I had a free month of Prime I realized quickly that I could burn right through what I wanted to watch in their Prime video catalog in about a month. I have Hulu right now for $11.99 a month commercial free, but it is mostly crap in the summer when the new seasons are over, so I could just switch over to a full Prime payment and drop Hulu for a few months, then switch back. That is the advantage I see in it.

[Catlady]

My first thought when I saw this was that holiday shoppers could really benefit from a one-month Prime membership in December. I signed up in the first place to get free shipping and quick delivery for Christmas gifts, since those shipping costs really add up without Prime.

[Conan46]

Originally Posted by Catlady

My first thought when I saw this was that holiday shoppers could really benefit from a one-month Prime membership in December. I signed up in the first place to get free shipping and quick delivery for Christmas gifts, since those shipping costs really add up without Prime.

Or November. That would give you a full month of pre-Christmas shopping, and not everything would be out of stock.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by Catlady

My first thought when I saw this was that holiday shoppers could really benefit from a one-month Prime membership in December. I signed up in the first place to get free shipping and quick delivery for Christmas gifts, since those shipping costs really add up without Prime.

Originally Posted by Conan46

Or November. That would give you a full month of pre-Christmas shopping, and not everything would be out of stock.

If I were doing Prime just for the shipping, I'd only do it for two months (10 Nov ~ 10 Jan). That would cover holiday shopping from pre-Black Friday sales to post-holiday sales.

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by Cosimo

I think the stand-alone streaming service will be a huge fail based on the quality of programs / movies they currently offer.

I've had Amazon Video for a while, but rarely use it. Most of the movies that I view on Amazon Video tends to be old, semi-obscure films that I can't find anywhere else and most of the time, I end up having to rent it rather than it being part of the prime video.

If Amazon wants to compete with Netflix, then they will have to give me a compelling reason to go there first, i.e. a better selection of movies that I actually want to watch. When there is a movie that I feel in the mood for, I normally first check Netflix (i.e. see it as part of my monthly subscription), then iTunes (rental) and finally Amazon Video if I can't find it either place.

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

Amazon just launched standalone monthly Prime and Prime Video services. Prime will cost $10.99/month and Prime Video will cost $8.99/month. Annual Prime is still $99/year (=$8.25/month).


Amazon Ups the Ante on Streaming Video, Challenging Netflix

I saw that yesterday and my immediate thought was that Video alone is all but $2 of the total amount for the complete Prime. Since I almost never use the Video portion of my Prime, I'm getting screwed over on price. Perhaps if Amazon had decent Video choices wherein you didn't have to actually pay for video on top of what you have already paid for the Prime membership, then it might not be such a reaming as it is. It seems like nearly anything I have been interested in viewing costs extra, and heaven forbid you want to view it in HD because that will cost even more! I know Amazon has free videos, but few if any of those are anything I would ever watch.

[emellaich]

It's possible that this is a stock market move not a marketing move. This paves the way for Amazon to begin reporting revenues for its video business. Amazon can take full-prime members and count 80% of their membership fees as prime fees.

The advantage of this? Netflix has a valuation of about $40 billion. Amazon is worth about $300B. However, they may claim that the video portion is undervalued. If Prime video is seen as a give away riding on the coat tails of free shipping then very little of that $300B can be attributed to Prime Video. By focusing on it as a separate business they might argue their market cap should be $340B (300 for the rest of Amazon and 40 for prime video).

[ebusinesstutor]

Amazon Prime is not a real competitor to Netflix until it manages to be available outside of the US.

For those of us who don't live in the US (the majority of the world's population isn't in the US), Netflix still remains the best choice for video.

[DuckieTigger]

It all depends on how picky you are as to which service to chose. You can pick a service (e.g. Netflix vs Amazon Video) based on what they offer, or pick what to watch based on which service you have. I don't have enough time to justify even one monthly subscription for streaming video or even music. There is always something to watch when I happen to turn Amazon Video on. And since the service comes free with Prime, I am under no pressure to justify the cost - the shipping benefits alone are already worth the $99/year to me. My theory why monthly Prime is only $2 more than Video is that Video gets subsidized with profits from purchases from those with Prime. Again, nobody would sign up for shipping benefits if they didn't plan to buy anything.

[ApK]

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