Hello and Namaste Everyone,
I have been using some OTT platforms for the last few years. Amazon Prime Video is the one that I have been using for the last few years along with some other Indian OTT platforms. Amazon is good because I go for the combined membership that offers content services and shopping. With the combined plan I can go for free delivery in shopping and also I get access. I use almost every popular OTT in India except for Netflix because it is expensive. I don't like the subscription model and this is why Netflix is not my thing. Now some changes are going to happen with Prime Video starting next year. OTT is good because there are no advertisements when we go for premium plans.
Some OTT platforms offer different plans. Mean to say there are some cheap plans offering advertisement and some premium plans with no advertisement so I have gone with no advertisement plans with those OTT services. Now Amazon is planning to bring advertisements on the plans but there is no clarity if they are going to have ads in all the plans or if there will be some aggregation.
In the recent update Amazon Prime video plans to move people on buying more expensive plans. According to the new update, even if you are a Prime member, you will see ads. The company said that the advertisement will let it invest in content for the video streaming platform. It will keep increasing that investment over a long period.
I got to know about it through the news and looks like the company is more aligned with making the existing plan expensive. Maybe they will add the advertisement to the current plan and those who want content with no ad have to pay more. Currently, the plan for Amazon Prime Video is available for 1499 INR. It is not a small amount in India but I pay this amount because I get content and a good shopping experience for a year so it is good for me. I will have to look into this if they are going to increase the prices further. Although I watch content there are many alternatives and if advertisements are there then I can choose to go with the shopping-only plan.
There are separate plans also available in India where users can go for either a shopping-only plan or video video-only plan. Jio Cinema is a very popular OTT application in India that has got variety of content and I use it more than Prime Video if prices are increased I have to make some changes. Maybe I will stop using the video service because I'm not ready to pay a higher amount than this just for the sake of no advertisement.
I have not decided anything but since this change is planned to be implemented from next year onwards. I will see how it works and how the company is going to make some changes to the plan. I hate watching advertisements and this is the reason why I pay such a high amount to Amazon but if they still add advertisements then it's not worth it. Now I'll just wait to see how they implement the changes and accordingly will make changes to my OTT expense also. I manage a budget for yearly OTT expenses and won't be increasing it further.
Thank you so much
Stay Safe