Amazon launches Amazon Channels in UK and Germany
Today, e-commerce giant Amazon announced the launch of Amazon Channels in the UK and Germany - two of Europe's largest markets. Part of Amazon's Prime Video service, Amazon Channels will offer 50 live and on-demand channels like Discovery, Eurosport, MGM etc., all of which can be subscribed to individually, thus becoming the first such service in Europe.
Amazon Channels was first launched in the US back in 2015 as a result of growing consumer preferences in favour of cord cutting. Owing to individual subscription choices, consumers in Europe, like the US, will now have the option to select only the channels that they want without having to pay expensive fees for pay-TV channel packages like those offered by Sky.
"For the first time, Prime members in the UK and Germany will be able to choose to watch premium TV channels without having to sign up to a bundle or a contract," said Alex Green, the MD of Amazon Channels, Europe.
As with other Amazon video services, customers will have considerable flexibility in accessing Amazon Channels. Amazon Channels will be accessible via Amazon's Prime Video app, as well as through the world wide web. It will also be accessible through Amazon's Video app for smart TVs, as well as Android and iOS mobile devices. Gaming consoles, Amazon Fire TVs and tablets are also supported.
"From live sport to Bollywood, arthouse cinema to reality TV, and award-winning TV shows from popular channels like Discovery and ITV, Amazon Channels gives power back to customers to choose exactly what they want to watch," added Green.
Channels available on Amazon Channels will be priced in the range of £1.49 to £9.49, with a bulk of channels coming in the range of £3.99 to £4.99. The base pack for Amazon Prime is priced at £7.99 per month for all services (except channels), and £5.99 per month for just video on demand.
Apart from a growing consumer base in Europe, Amazon has much to gain from the launch of Amazon Channels. For starters, in the event of the service's success, Amazon will generate massive amounts of big data relating to consumer preferences with respect to television content. This can then be used to explore new areas - be it sports rights, new original content etc.
