With new CEOs discussing what’s going on at Disney, and bloodshed at Warner Bros. Discovery and now AMC, it’s easy to overlook other incumbents in the still-evolving video streaming business. .
Perhaps nowhere is it more likely than Amazon where a gigantic stream, like the river it is named after, seems to be moving so many entertainment assets of the online commerce and cloud behemoth. I guess. Small pieces of flotsam are popping up here and there, hinting at big changes beneath the seemingly calm surface that could affect entire industries.
First, it’s worth noting that 2022 was already pretty impressive (and very expensive). In March, the company completed his $8.45 billion acquisition of acclaimed film and television studio MGM in multiples that raised eyebrows across Hollywood. That put thousands of movies, tens of thousands of hours of TV shows, a production team, his premium cable network, and endless opportunities for remakes, reboots, and sequels in Amazon’s hands.
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In September, Amazon launched its most expensive series to date, ring of power. It did not quite match the ratings of its obvious competitor, HBO. house of dragonsbut looks well positioned in the long run.
a few weeks later Lord of the Ring When the prequel debuted, Amazon launched its first season of in-house production. thursday night football A cast that pays the NFL $1 billion a year. Despite some very nasty matchups that tested Hall of Fame broadcaster Al Michaels, the game garnered promising ratings and subscriber signups. I’m here.
And despite the eye-popping spending behind these 2022 projects, CEO Andy Jassy said last week’s new york times At the Dealbook Summit, Amazon’s entertainment venture proclaimed that it’s about more than just getting people to buy stuff online.
“Over time, I think there’s an opportunity to turn the Prime Video business into a standalone business with very attractive economics,” Jassy said. Amazon Prime Video must be intimidating to all of its competitors funding the shift from its declining broadcast and cable businesses to streaming.
Jassy’s comment states that Amazon many, It’s getting bigger and bigger when it comes to entertainment. Among the changes in the last few weeks:
At the Dealbook conference, Jassy articulated a future where Amazon would not only create a lot of its own content, but would also serve as a distribution fulcrum for many other services through its Channels program.
Jassy suggested that despite the flexibility and breadth of content and choices that streaming has brought, many viewers miss one real good thing about cable TV.
“Customers want to go somewhere and find everything they want,” says Jassy. “They don’t want him to go to five or he six different places.”
His comments caught the attention of attendees at this week’s OTT.X Strategy Summit. Consumer concerns about Skipabout are a real problem, they said. And for the niche channels that make up an important part of OTT.X membership, having a place where customers can easily find and subscribe to your network is invaluable.
But it’s enough to look at Amazon’s history to understand the risks if it eventually wins that kind of role in much of the industry.
One day your company may see a significant reduction in the fees Amazon pays for your content. It’s not hard to imagine a day when media companies wake up to find that Amazon is making their own version of the same thing at a much lower price.
No matter what Amazon does in the next few years, I think Jassy is right about one thing.
We know Amazon will be around beyond 2024. The question is, who else is there and how will they reach the audience they need to survive and thrive.
