Amazon announced that it now offers over 100,000 movies and TV shows through its Amazon Instant Video service. That includes new releases, and these titles can be either purchased or rented.
These titles start at $3.99 a piece, and can be viewed on Macs, PCs, or on TV via 300 different devices from Lg, Logitech, Panasonic, Roku, Samsung, Sony, Tivo, and Vizio.
“We are focused on offering our customers the very best selection and are always working to expand our already extensive list of great video content,” said Steve Oliver, director of video at Amazon. “The 100,000 titles on Amazon Instant Video range from new hit blockbusters to old favorites, with more than 15,000 of those titles available in HD, and popular TV shows available the day after they first air. On top of that, Amazon Prime members have the added benefit of unlimited, commercial-free, instant streaming of more than 9,000 Prime instant videos at no additional cost.”
Netflix, the current leader in movie rental, recently announced a new pricing structure that has been pretty controversial among members. Essentially, members who have had their streaming and DVD together plan have to pay 60% more to keep the same level of service. This goes into effect September 1 for existing members (that’s not too far off).
Amazon is often named as a major contender in the streaming space – the space that appears to be the future norm of video consumption. It will be interesting to see how the market share changes (if it does) once September gets here.
Amazon sites already attract one in five Internet users around the globe, according to a report out this week from comScore. They’ve also got tablet aspirations, which could factor heavily into their video streaming plans.
Amazon announced a 51% year-over-year growth in revenue for the second quarter in its latest earnings report. They also announced a deal with CBS to stream the networks’ TV shows.
