• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, September 22, 2023

Amazon — which already owns the free, ad-supported/FAST Freevee — is joining the growing ranks of major streamers introducing ad-supported video-on-demand/AVOD options.

Starting in early 2024, the up-to-now ad-free Prime Video service that is included with an Amazon Prime membership will have “limited” advertising, Amazon announced in its blog this morning.

Prime members who want an ad-free experience will be charged an additional $2.99 per month, and will still see ads in sports and other live content. 

The new options will be introduced in the U.S., U.K., Germany and Canada early next year, followed by France, Italy, Spain, Mexico and Australia later in 2024. The no-ads tier prices for those countries will be announced at a later date.

Amazon said it will not change the current Prime membership fee, which in the U.S. is currently $14.99 a month or $139 per year.

Amazon has been offering the ad-free Prime Video service to non-Prime members at $8.99 per month, but has not promoted that option, as its corporate strategy relies heavily on continuing to expand the lucrative, ongoing Prime subscriptions, which include a wide range of benefits ranging from free product delivery to discounted prescriptions and grocery delivery. The company’s blog announcement did not address which Prime Video subscription options will be made available to non-Prime members going forward.

“To continue investing in compelling content and keep increasing that investment over a long period of time, starting in early 2024, Prime Video shows and movies will include limited advertisements,” Amazon said in the message. “We aim to have meaningfully fewer ads than linear TV and other streaming TV providers.”

Disney+, AMC+, Netflix, Max and other rival streamers already offer AVOD tiers.