This New Amazon Prime Strategy Might Make Indian Users Pay More For Best Quality Video And Audio،
Last month, Amazon Prime Video began serving In-Stream ads in several regions, including the US and UK. Those who don't want to see ads have to pay $3 per month on top of the subscription price. Although the development hasn't even rolled out to all users, the platform has decided to lock high-fidelity video and audio experiences behind a paywall.
Viewers have to pay more to watch content in Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos
Prime Video has confirmed (to The Verge) that Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos capabilities are locked to the ad-free option for relevant titles in the latest development. This came to light after 4KFilme noticed that their Sony and LG smart TVs were streaming content in HDR10 and Dolby Digital 5.1 instead of Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos.
Better viewing formats are now part of the ad-free tier
In the future, users who want to watch supported movies or TV shows in the aforementioned formats will need to upgrade to the ad-free tier which costs $3 per month. Are there two sides to this coin? Yes there is. Even though Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos provide a more immersive experience by improving video and audio quality, not everyone can tell the difference.
Therefore, many users may not notice that their movie or web series is playing in HDR10 or Dolby Digital 5.1. However, some users are particular about this and have spent a fortune to buy a smart TV that can handle such formats. For them, it is a great disappointment that the regular subscription level with advertisements no longer allows them to broadcast with the best possible quality.
How does this affect Indian users?
Although the ads in the standard tier and the $3 ad-free tier are not showing in India at the moment, sooner or later they might. Be it Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar or Netflix, subscription fees for OTT services are much lower in India than abroad. As most of the platforms are in a race to maximize their profits, there is a good chance that Amazon may introduce the new strategy in India very soon.
Prices will likely remain similar. However, introducing tiered ads, as Disney+ Hotstar already does, could be the way forward for Amazon Prime and Netflix.
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