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Why it matters: Amazon followed through on its promise to introduce ads to television shows and movies earlier this year, infusing Prime Video content with a starter dose of commercials. The e-commerce giant expected some churn – that is, people to leave the service – but was surprised when subscriber numbers weren't really affected.
Armed with the win, they're planning to open up more ad slots in 2025.
Kelly Day, vice-president of Prime Video International, told the Financial Times that Amazon intentionally launched its ad push in January with a light load in an effort to avoid overwhelming customers.
If you recall, ads hit the service on January 29. All of the company's more than 200 million global subscribers were put on the ad-supported tier although for $3 more per month, customers can opt out of the ads.
Amazon also quietly stripped Dolby Atmos and Dolby Vision HDR support. These features are now locked behind the aforementioned $3 paywall. According to The Wall Street Journal, current Prime Video watchers on the ad-supported tier can expect between two and three-and-a-half minutes of ads per hour
Day didn't disclose how many customers have switched to the ad-free tier, but noted it was less than the 20 percent figure that some analysts had estimated.
Looking ahead to 2025, Day told the publication that Amazon will be opening up more ad slots to brands. It's a risky move with several potential outcomes, but one Amazon is prepared to embark on.
If done in a non-intrusive way, it's likely that customers will simply put up with it as they did with the first round. Too aggressive a push, however, could result in some users abandoning Prime Video – or worse, canceling their Prime membership out of spite.
The latter could very well come to fruition as Amazon is also planning to launch interactive, "shoppable" ads that allow customers to add items to their shopping cart right from their remote. For those that simply want to watch programming uninterrupted, this could be a deal breaker.