Amazon to roll out ads on Prime Video in 2024

STORY: Attention Amazon Prime Subscribers: Ads will soon run during some of your favorite shows and movies.

In a blog post on Friday, the streaming service said it will roll out ads in early 2024 – and offer a higher-priced tier that’s commercial free.

The move follows similar ones made by rivals Netflix and Disney, as the streaming industry hopes ad revenue will offset a slowdown in subscriber growth.

Amazon said ads will first be introduced in the U.S., Canada, UK and Germany, and rolled out in France, Mexico and Australia, among other countries, later in the year.

In the U.S., an add-free tier will cost an extra $2.99 a month – that’s on top of the current monthly charge of $14.99. Amazon said pricing for other countries will be shared later.

Amazon already shows ads during live events, such as NFL's Thursday Night Football, a practice the company said will continue even if a subscriber has paid for an ad-free plan.

Shares of Amazon were up more than one-and-a-half percent in Friday morning trading.