Amazon Is Reportedly Beta Testing Ad-Supported MiniTV Content on Prime Video

Amazon Prime Video subscribers will reportedly start seeing Amazon miniTV content on the platform as well. As per afaqs!, the streamer will integrate an ‘ad-supported’ content carousel in the coming weeks, which will broaden its reach beyond the default Amazon shopping app. It’s unclear what this shift would look like, since by default the only ads you’d get when streaming content are skippable teasers for other Prime Video originals. The integration is currently being beta tested on select paid accounts, with a full rollout expected ‘soon’, as per the report.

Understandably, there should also be a way to get rid of those advertisements, which begs the question of whether Amazon India is planning to hike the subscription prices for Prime features, or introduce an entirely new tier. The report notes that these changes were announced by Pratik Udeshi, Head – Agency and Video, Amazon Ads, during Day 2 of the ongoing Goafest 2023 event. Udeshi added that advertisers will be able to introduce any new launches, product promotions, or brand extensions on the platform. “Besides this, the avenue also enables brands to place their display pages or links to brand stores,” it reads, which is a wild manoeuvre for Amazon Prime Video which has typically touted ad-free content as a major benefit.

For what it’s worth, it seems as if the ads will be strictly limited to the miniTV content carousel, although, I’m assuming it will be jarring nonetheless. The content will be available on the Prime Video app as well as the desktop (browser) — hopefully, it’s located a few scrolls down and not smack dab on the homepage.

In April, Amazon Prime Video signed a deal with Paramount Global Content Distribution to expand its Indian catalogue with four new shows. Star Trek: Discovery, The Stand, Mayor of Kingstown, and the Yellowstone prequel series 1883, all are now included as part of the general subscription at no extra cost. Among those, Star Trek: Discovery was originally available on Netflix in India, but got pulled out of the platform ahead of season 4’s premiere. This new deal brings the entire arc onto Amazon’s streamer, in addition to serving as the home for the upcoming fifth and final season.

More recently, Amazon revamped its existing distribution team into a new unit — Amazon MGM Studios Distribution, which will license content such as the Emmy-winning The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Hunters, and more to other streaming platforms and third-party media. A bunch of MGM properties including James Bond and Rocky will potentially be shopped around as free or basic cable TV, in addition to ad-supported VODs. The plan is to expand Prime Video content outwards and generate more revenue by adding it to MGM’s distribution setup.