Amazon follows Netflix to Japan
August 27, 2015
Amazon has confirmed will launch its Prime Instant Video service in Japan in September. Consumers will have to be subscribed to Amazon Prime in order to access the content. Prime currently costs 3,900 yen a year in Japan (about €30). Japan will be the fifth country in which the service is available.
Amazon Japan president Jasper Cheung said: “As we’ve shown with the launch of Prime Video in the US and around the world, we are investing significantly to bring high-quality, local and popular programming to Prime members, and our customers in Japan should expect the same investment. We’ve been offering videos and DVDs in Japan for 15 years — we know the entertainment customers want — and we plan to deliver it with Prime Video, all at no additional cost.”
The service is home to original series including Red Oaks, Transparent and Mozart In The Jungle.
Netflix will launch also launch its own video streaming service in Japan next month, with a fixed-rate subscription fee.