Amazon spins out Prime Video and launches it globally
It'll cost just $3/€3 per month for the first six months, but only include Amazon's original content.
For years, Amazon has used its video streaming service as a carrot to get customers to sign up to its annual Prime subscription. It meant that viewers who didn't live in one of Amazon's supported countries couldn't watch the retail giant's original TV shows and movies without having to resort to alternative means. With Jeremy Clarkson and co. now on the service following the big-budget debut of The Grand Tour, Amazon has decided to fully engage Netflix and spin out its streaming service, today launching Prime Video in "200 countries and territories" around the world with a low introductory price of $3/€3 per month.
As a standalone service, Prime Video takes the experience that Prime customers are used to and places much of it on a separate website. Subscribers can watch Amazon's original TV shows and movies in English, with many subtitled and dubbed in French, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish. Customers who are subscribed to Prime in Belgium, Canada, France, India, Italy and Spain will immediately get access to Prime Video from today, with all content available via the Prime Video iOS, Android and smart TV apps.
Amazon's expansion has been on the cards since Clarkson, Hammond and May confirmed that their new motoring show would "soon be available to everyone" last month. It means that the company is a streaming provider in its own right and provides Netflix, which launched in more than 130 countries this year, with some much-needed competition.
If you live in one of the 19 countries or territories where Prime Video comes bundled as standard, you will continue to be directed to your regional Amazon portal to watch a wider selection of content online. As for that $3/€3 monthly introductory price, it's available for the first six months but you'll be bumped up to $6/€6 a month once it expires.
