Amazon’s decision to charge Prime members extra for an ad-free service has ignited a firestorm of backlash online.
“Starting January 29, Prime Video movies and TV shows will include limited advertisement,” Amazon said in an email to members. “This will allow us to continue investing in compelling content and keep increasing that investment over a long period of time.”
If Amazon Prime members want to keep their $139 service uninterrupted and ad-free, the company says customers can pay an extra $2.99 per month for a commercial-free subscription.
Amazon Prime is the latest streaming platform to roll out an ad-tier service. While companies like Netflix and Amazon have introduced commercials to boost their revenues amid current macroeconomic conditions, many paying customers have grown increasingly tired of being charged more to receive less.
“Amazon’s quality of service and product has been going downhill, all while you keep raising the Prime annual fee,” said Chris Hohnholz in a post on X. “And now you all keep stripping away things we had as a privilege of being a Prime member. We have to pay even MORE to get those privileges back. I’ve about had enough.”
Other social media users also chimed in on the topic.
“Amazon Prime selling ad space and then charging me to avoid it feels like them taxing me for making Ring of Power such a s***ty s***ty show,” said @Nymdok in a post on X. “Aint nobody asked you to make that… Take your L and don’t charge me for it.”
Once the new season of Reacher wraps up, @Nymdok says he will “drop” Amazon Prime Video altogether.
“If I wanted a network with ads, and episodes dropping once a week, I would watch network TV,” said social media user @OffTopicTim.
While Amazon says it “aim[s] to have meaningfully fewer ads than linear TV and other streaming TV providers,” the company has not offered any details on what that might look like.
The Dallas Express reached out to Amazon for a comment but did not hear back by publication.
