Amazon is making a change to Prime Video and it's bad news for 4K content
Prices are going up but only in one territory (for now)
by Robyn Quick · What Hi-Fi?
Share this article
0
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Get the What Hi-Fi? Newsletter
The latest hi-fi, home cinema and tech news, reviews, buying advice and deals, direct to your inbox.
Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors
By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Subscribe to our newsletter
As streaming services have surged in popularity over the last decade, we have also seen prices soar and additional tiers used as a way to ramp up subscription costs.
And Amazon Prime Video is the latest service to up its prices, with its ad-free tier going up from $2.99 to $4.99 in the US, starting from 10th April. This tier is also being rebranded as Amazon Prime Video Ultra.
Paying for this tier removes advertisements and gives you access to 4K content. You also get more offline downloads (100 rather than 25), the option of more concurrent streams (five instead of three), and Dolby Atmos audio.
Article continues below
However, this change does mean that 4K UHD content is now locked behind a paywall and no longer available through the 'free' package included with a Prime membership.
The tech giant says, “this structure aligns with other major streaming services while ensuring customers have the flexibility to choose how they want to watch”.
It’s certainly true that Amazon is far from the first company to remove 4K content from the basic tier, with Disney+ and Netflix both limiting 4K video to more expensive package options.
The price increase is only in the US for now but we'd be surprised if it didn't come across the pond to the UK at some point soon.
Get the What Hi-Fi? Newsletter
The latest hi-fi, home cinema and tech news, reviews, buying advice and deals, direct to your inbox.
Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors
MORE:
Here is our review of Amazon Prime Video
I pay for Amazon Prime Video, so why am I seeing ads?
Check out our review of Apple TV 4K