Prime Video gets more advertising – because subscribers tolerated the first round so well

If you're an Amazon Prime Video customer, expect more ads.

Earlier this year, Amazon announced that it would stop showing ads for its Prime Video service unless you pay $2.99 ​​per month exit. At the time, Amazon called the advertising “limited” and noted that viewers would see “significantly less advertising than on linear television and other streaming TV services.”

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According to Kelly Day, Amazon's vice president of Prime Video International, this experiment worked so well that it will be expanded.

Speaking to the Financial Times, Day said Amazon would “expand” its advertising program and offer even more slots to shoppers in 2025. Amazon's initial foray into advertising was “very small,” Day added. For example, there are no breaks in the middle of the program.

However, it's not clear exactly how many more ads will be coming – or whether we'll see the introduction of content-disrupting ads.

Day did not say how many customers switched to the ad-free tier, but it was less than 20%, a number that some analysts said was a possible target.

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Amazon isn't the only one adding more commercials. Netflix dropped its cheapest ad-free plan last year, and other streaming platforms like Disney+, Hulu, Max and Paramount+ have added ad-supported tiers.

Why is Amazon introducing more ads? The customers tolerated the first round. Churn, the number of customers who canceled after the ad influx in January, was “much, much lower than expected,” Day said.

Among the new commercials Amazon saysThey will be shoppable ads that allow you to browse and purchase multiple related products, interactive pause ads (like the ones that just appeared on YouTube) that allow you to interact with brands while your content is on hold , and interactive trivia ads that help you earn Amazon shopping credit and unlock other rewards. These ads appear on both mobile devices and traditional TVs.