Amazon Prime Video India to Introduce Ads in June

Amazon to Introduce Advertisements to Prime Video in India

Starting June 17th, Amazon will begin displaying advertisements within movies and television shows on its Prime Video platform in India. This rollout occurs more than a year following the initial implementation of ads in other key markets, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Canada.

Announcement to Indian Prime Members

Amazon notified Prime members in India via email on Tuesday regarding the upcoming introduction of “limited advertisements” during content streaming on Prime Video. The company initially revealed plans in October to introduce ads to Prime Video in India this year, but specific details were not disclosed at the time.

Ad-Free Option Available

According to a company spokesperson, an add-on option for an ad-free Prime Video experience will also be made available to subscribers in India. This add-on will be offered at an introductory price of 699 Indian rupees annually, or 129 Indian rupees monthly. This is in addition to the existing Prime membership fee.

Mirroring the U.S. Strategy

Last year, Amazon launched a $3 monthly add-on in the U.S. designed to provide an ad-free viewing experience for Prime Video subscribers. This initiative is reported to have generated over $1.8 billion in committed ad spending for the streaming service.

This week, Amazon announced that over 130 million viewers in the U.S. now utilize the ad-supported version of Prime Video, an increase from 115 million viewers the previous year.

Leveraging MX Player

In addition to Prime Video, Amazon operates MX Player in India, a platform that already incorporates advertisements as a revenue stream. MX Player, acquired from Times Internet last year, offers a subscription service to reduce the number of ads displayed to users.

Prime Membership Costs in India

Amazon Prime membership in India is priced starting at 299 Indian rupees per month, with options extending up to 1,499 Indian rupees annually.

Industry Trend

Amazon is not alone in adopting ad-supported streaming plans. Competitors such as Netflix and Disney+ also offer ad-supported tiers in the U.S. and various other international markets.