If your nightly binge session on Prime Video feels more interrupted than usual, you’re not alone, and you’re not imagining it.
Amazon has quietly increased the ad load on Prime Video to between four and six minutes per hour, according to a report from Adweek. That’s nearly double the two to three-and-a-half minutes per hour that ad buyers were originally told to expect when Amazon introduced ads to the platform in January 2024.
The move signals a significant shift in strategy for the retail giant’s streaming arm, which initially positioned itself as having fewer ads than rival services. Less than 18 months later, the number of ads has quietly crept up, without any formal public announcement.
“Prime Video ad load has gradually increased to four to six minutes per hour,” an Amazon representative wrote to an ad buyer in an email obtained by Adweek.
The change gives Amazon significantly more advertising inventory to sell across its rapidly expanding streaming business. Since launching its ad-supported tier by default for all subscribers, unless they pay an extra $3 per month to opt out, Amazon has amassed an ad-supported audience of over 150 million global users.
To ease the backlash in early 2024 when the changes were introduced, the company kept ads relatively light. But by late 2024, the Financial Times was reporting that Amazon was signalling to investors that the volume would increase in 2025.
In a statement provided to Adweek, an Amazon Ads spokesperson said the brands commitment to improving ad experiences rather than simply increasing the number of ads shown.
“While demand continues to grow, our commitment is to improving ad experiences rather than simply increasing the number of ads shown,” the statement said.
B&T approached Prime Video’s ANZ team for comment on how these changes have impacted Australian audiences but did not received a response prior to publication.
The increase also coincides with a broader push to make Prime Video more attractive to advertisers. Amazon has recently rolled out private auctions, show-level data, and new contextual targeting tools, all designed to help it stand out in a crowded streaming market.
Compared to traditional TV, which airs around 13 to 16 minutes of ads per hour, Prime Video’s new range is still relatively lean. But it now places the platform squarely in the “middle tier” of streaming ad loads, with services like Hulu, Paramount+ and Tubi carrying a heavier load and Netflix the lightest.
For advertisers, the increased ad volume brings opportunity. More inventory typically results in lower CPMs, and with Prime Video’s reach, that could prove compelling. But the balancing act remains delicate.
As Amazon continues to scale its advertising ambitions, it risks alienating the very subscribers that made Prime Video so attractive in the first place. More ads may mean more revenue, but if the viewer experience suffers, that growth could come at a cost.
