Prime Video Is Adding Commercials to All Movies and Shows

The days of ad-free streaming on Amazon's Prime Video service will soon come to an end. After announcing in September plans to begin implementing "limited" commercials in the U.S., U.K., Germany, and Canada, the company announced in a letter to subscribers this week that commercials will be introduced to series and movies beginning Monday, Jan. 29.

"We are writing to you today about an upcoming change to your Prime Video experience. Starting January 29, Prime Video movies and TV shows will include limited advertisements," the company said. "This will allow us to continue investing in compelling content and keep increasing that investment over a long period of time. We aim to have meaningfully fewer ads than linear TV and other streaming TV providers. No action is required from you, and there is no change to the current price of your Prime membership."

According to Amazon, there is an option to avoid ads. Those wishing to continue streaming without interruptions can opt in to the company's new ad-free option for an additional $2.99 per month. You can sign up for the ad-free option here. The company said, "Prime Video customers have the option to pre-register for the monthly ad-free option, but won't be billed until January 29."

Per Amazon, there will not be ads on content that is purchased or rented, and customers in Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam and the Mariana Islands will not see ads rolled out. Following the rollout of ads in the US and Canada on Jan. 29, Amazon plans to expand them to France, Italy, Spain, Mexico and Australia later in 2024, though an exact date has not been announced.

The news comes after Amazon in September first announced plans to implement ads. At the time, the company said it intended "to have meaningfully fewer ads than linear TV and other streaming TV providers," though it did not specify how long those ad spots would be. The news made Prime Video the latest streaming service to implement ads, following on the heels of rivals such as Disney+ and Netflix.

Prime Video is included in an Amazon Prime membership, which costs $14.99 per month or $139 annually. Prime Video can also be subscribed to individually for $8.99 per month. With the $2.99 ad-free streaming option, the new charge for Prime will be just under $18, with the standalone Prime Video monthly cost rising to just under $12.