• by Wayne Friedman , Yesterday

Amazon Ads has finished its upfront TV-video advertising deal-making with “significant growth,” according to the company.

Amazon Ads -- which sells ads for platforms including Prime Video, Freevee, Twitch, Fire TV -- did not reveal specific details in terms of volume, pricing gains, or new brand or rising ad categories.

Michael Morton, media analyst of MoffettNathanson Research, estimated that Amazon upfront revenues were projected to soar 30% to $1.8 billion from a year ago -- with major gains primarily in its Prime Video, and Freevee platforms.

Pricing for non-NFL programming on Prime Video will continue to come in at around $20-$30 for the cost per thousand viewers (CPMs), according to analysts.

Media Dynamics has estimated that on average for the 2025-26 TV season, premium streaming platforms will see a 7.6% decline this year to $27.25.

Amazon started up an advertising option for Prime Video in January 2024. Analysts say the flood of new streaming advertising inventory since then has kept average overall program CPMs from seeing any gains.

For 2026, Morton estimates that upfront business for Prime Video/Freevee is projected to see a sharp overall increase of 22% to $2.1 billion.

Amazon did not provide in-depth financial details, but said it “exceeded our own expectations in upfront commitments” versus a year ago. It added that there were “particularly strong commitments from independent [media ] agencies.”

Amazon added more valuable live sports content to its Prime Video platform, especially the forthcoming high-profile NBA contract (”NBA on Prime”) for “incremental volume growth.”

Total advertising revenue across all Amazon ad platforms amounted to $56.2 billion in 2024 -- up from $46.9 billion in 2023.