Amazon Freevee, formerly IMDb Freedive and then IMDb TV, is getting more than 100 Amazon Original programs from Amazon Prime Video. The ad-supported free streaming service will release the new original series and movies throughout the year. Some of the series will be limited to a few teaser episodes designed to drive customers to Amazon Prime. Amazon SVP of ad products and tech Colleen Aubrey touted this and other reveals at New York’s IAB NewFronts in the context of brands using Amazon’s ad-supported streaming TV solutions to reach an average monthly audience of more than 155 million viewers in the U.S. Continue reading Prime Originals Head to Amazon Freevee, Fire TV Goes FAST

Amazon is rolling out a redesigned Prime Video app for Android and connected living room devices, including Fire TV for customers worldwide, with iOS and web to follow. The company says the new interface will make discovery and navigation much easier. Among the visual enhancements are a Top 10 Chart showcasing trending Prime Video content and “Super Carousel” displays with “poster-style artwork” for Amazon Originals. Also emphasized is graphical distinction between content included with Prime memberships versus that which is available for general purchase. Continue reading Amazon Launches Updates to Its Prime Video User Interface

Amazon Kids+ is debuting its first free original mobile games. Ad-free mobile games based on the Amazon Original children shows “Super Spy Ryan” and “Do, Re & Mi” are now available for any smartphone user, even those who don’t subscribe to Amazon Kids+. The company says it “wanted do something special for kids and parents who use smartphones.” The games are the result of a two-year development effort by “the Amazon Kids+ mobile games team,” according to Amazon Kids+ global head of content Natasha Lipovac. Amazon has been very active in the children’s arena. Continue reading Amazon Kids+ Skips Ads for First Free Mobile Game Releases

Amazon Studios’ free streaming service IMDb TV has been rebranded Freevee as part of a global expansion. The ad-supported video on demand (AVOD) platform has in the past two years tripled its monthly active users, with growth driven by “rapid distribution across living room devices and mobile, an increasing slate of originals, frequently updated library of licensed content and more than 60 channels,” according to Amazon. Following a successful launch in the UK last September, Freevee will launch in Germany this year and plans to expand original programming by 70 percent in 2022. Continue reading Amazon Rebrands Its IMDb TV Streaming Service as Freevee

Amazon is adding an interactive clip-sharing feature to its Prime Video streaming service that allows users to share short video clips from Amazon Originals via social media and direct message. The feature is available for Amazon series “The Boys,” “The Wilds,” “Invincible” and “Fairfax,” with plans to expand to other original TV shows and movies in the future. Users can click on the “Share a clip” button while watching the content, and the app will generate a 30-second clip. Amazon is the first major streaming platform to introduce such a video-sharing feature. For the initial rollout, the feature is only available for iOS users in the U.S. Continue reading Amazon Prime Video Is First to Launch a Clip-Sharing Feature

For the first time, numbers are available to demonstrate how Amazon’s original video strategy is paying off. Thanks to internal documents read by Reuters, the general public can see evidence that Amazon’s top shows enticed over 5 million people to sign up for its Prime shopping membership by 2017. Using video to create shoppers is a key to Amazon’s strategy, and chief executive Jeff Bezos has been open about that approach. In total, Amazon’s U.S. audience for video (original and licensed) is about 26 million. Continue reading Internal Numbers Reveal the Success of Amazon Prime Video

Amazon announced that it is introducing limited support for high dynamic range content on its Amazon Instant Video service. The HDR support will initially launch for Amazon Prime members in the U.S. with the full original series “Mozart in the Jungle” and the pilot episode of the original “Red Oaks.” Netflix announced earlier that it also plans to support HDR video this year, starting with its original series “Marco Polo.” However, most consumers have yet to purchase televisions that support HDR, so it may take a while for the technology to gain mainstream adoption. Continue reading Amazon Prime Instant Video Intros HDR Support for New Series