Is Prime Video Still Worth It? New Report Claims It Shows Twice as Many Ads After Amazon's Push

The latest status of video streaming experiences on Amazon Prime Video is now reportedly showing twice as many ads compared to when it first rolled out this massive revamp to the platform. This latest increase was noticed by reports, with users now made to sit through two times more advertisement inserts to their streaming experiences unless they opt for the ad-free upgrade.

Previously, users have already complained about Amazon's notorious ads for Prime Video, as some claimed that these cannot be skipped after the elapsed time or appear more frequently compared to what they initially promised.

Amazon Doubles Ads Seen on Prime Video

A new report from Adweek revealed that Amazon has amped up the advertisements users see on the platform by as much as two times its number from their previous changes on Prime Video. The report detailed that Prime Video's current "ad load" now offers four to six video ads to play on one's streaming experiences for every hour on the platform, increasing its numbers following their shared plans last year.

Previously, Amazon Prime Video only showed around three and a half minutes of ads in an hour for its subscribers who opted to remain at the ad-supported tier, but now it can span up to six minutes.

It is important to note that Amazon's only tier before offered an ad-free experience at $8.99 for the standalone or $14.99 per month for the Prime membership, but while the same rates apply, users have to pay an extra $2.99 for the ad-free experience.

Is Amazon Prime Video Still Worth It?

More ads now appear on Amazon for those who did not opt for the ad-free upgrade worth $3, and it added twice as many more video advertisements on the platform based on the latest report.

According to Engadget, users who opted not to upgrade also lost features like Dolby Atmos and Dolby Vision whichthey previously enjoyed. While Prime Video is still known for its iconic offers and originals, the best option for users now is to get the ad-free add-on to avoid having to sit through more disruptions from their streaming.

Amazon's Ads Focus on Prime Video

Towards the end of 2023, Amazon announced that it would be incorporating ads into the Prime Video platform starting in 2024 as part of its massive changes, but promised that an ad-free experience is still available. However, the real surprise came when the changes arrived, particularly as the only subscription option for users features an ad-supported tier, and those who want to skip these had to pay extra.

Instead of offering a "basic" tier with ads, Amazon changed all types of accounts to ad-supported ones and only gave them the option to upgrade to the ad-free experience.

While Amazon promised that the same iconic Prime Video experience will remain despite the ads, many users have grown frustrated since it rolled out, claiming that the platform inserts them aggressively in their streaming experiences.

In one case, a user complained that as many as nine ads in a row appeared in their case, and this happened after pausing the video, and claimed that when they returned to close the pop-up ad, three to four new ones appeared before they were able to resume streaming.

Now, the latest on Amazon's Prime Video is how these ads grew in volume on the streaming platform, with more to show for subscribers who have not upgraded to the previously-enjoyed ad-free experiences.