Advanced Television

Amazon: “Over 175m use Prime Video”

April 30, 2021

Amazon has reported its Q1 2021 results, as its Prime Video streaming service turns 10 years old.

The web giant saw operating income increase to $8.9 billion (€7.3bn) in the first quarter, compared with operating income of $4 billion in Q1 2020. Net income increased to $8.1 billion, compared with net income of $2.5 billion in the same period last year.

“Two of our kids are now 10 and 15 years old—and after years of being nurtured, they’re growing up fast and coming into their own,” said Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and CEO. “As Prime Video turns 10, over 175 million Prime members have streamed shows and movies in the past year, and streaming hours are up more than 70 per cent year over year. Amazon Studios received a record 12 Academy Award nominations and two wins. Upcoming originals include Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse [pictured], The Tomorrow War, The Underground Railroad, and much more. In just 15 years, AWS has become a $54 billion annual sales run rate business competing against the world’s largest technology companies, and its growth is accelerating—up 32 per cent year over year. Companies from Airbnb to McDonald’s to Volkswagen come to AWS because we offer what is by far the broadest set of tools and services available, and we continue to invent relentlessly on their behalf. We love Prime Video and AWS, and we’re proud to have them in the family.”

Entertainment highlights

  • This quarter marked Amazon Studios’ most successful awards season to date and the first time a streaming service has won a best picture Golden Globe award from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Original titles earned 10 Golden Globe nominations and three awards for Small Axe (Supporting Actor John Boyega) and Borat Subsequent Moviefilm (Best Picture Musical/Comedy and Best Actor Musical/Comedy). Amazon Studios also earned 12 Academy Award nominations, a record for the studio, across four films: One Night in Miami…, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, Time, and Sound of Metal, which won two awards (Best Sound and Best Film Editing).
  • Coming 2 America launched worldwide on Prime Video, becoming the #1 streamed movie its opening weekend and the #1 opening weekend for a streamed movie this year according to Screen Engine/ASI. Regina King’s feature directorial debut One Night in Miami… also launched to critical acclaim, receiving numerous accolades, including a Critics’ Choice Award as well as Golden Globe, SAG, and Oscar nominations. In addition, new Amazon Original Invincible premiered to praise from TV critics, and Prime Video debuted Local Originals The Stand (Canada), Guerra de Likes (Mexico), The Great Escapists (UK), La Templanza (Spain), and We Children from Bahnhof Zoo (Germany).
  • Amazon Studios continues to invest in diverse creators and content. This quarter, Amazon Studios announced new series for Prime Video, including a Mr. and Mrs. Smith remake created by and starring Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Donald Glover, as well as a young adult series The Summer I Turned Pretty from writer Jenny Han. The studio also announced that the sci-fi action film The Tomorrow War from Skydance Media starring Chris Pratt will premiere on July 2.
  • Amazon announced that Prime Video will become the exclusive home for Thursday Night Football beginning in 2023—making Prime Video the first streaming service to secure an exclusive national broadcast package from the NFL. The 10-year deal gives tens of millions of US Prime members exclusive access to must-watch live football on Prime Video and also expands the Thursday Night Football package from 11 to 15 regular-season games.
  • Amazon, the New York Yankees, and YES Network announced 21 regular-season games will stream on Prime Video in 2021. All games will be available to stream throughout New York State, Connecticut, northeast Pennsylvania, and north and central New Jersey at no additional cost to Prime members. All Yankees games on Prime Video this season will feature Amazon’s exclusive X-Ray technology, which gives real-time access to live in-game stats, team and player details, and real-time play-by-play information. In addition, Prime Video will air a new 15-minute pregame show ahead of the first pitch for every Prime Video broadcast.
  • The Live Sports offering for Prime Video continues to grow internationally. In the first quarter, Prime Video broadcast five additional Premier League football matches in the UK. Prime Video also kicked off 2021 coverage of the ATP and WTA Tour tennis tournaments, including exclusive coverage of the Miami Open. In Australia, Prime Video announced an exclusive, two-year, live broadcast streaming deal to distribute the Australian Swimming championship events globally on Prime Video at no additional cost to Prime members.
  • Amazon Music continues to expand its international reach of podcasts, launching localized offerings in France, Italy, Spain, and India for customers across all streaming tiers, at no additional cost. Amazon Music also announced the integration of artist merchandise into the Amazon Music app, providing a new shopping experience for music fans. Customers can now shop a curated, Prime-eligible selection of artist merchandise while listening to their favorite music, uninterrupted.

Amazon Devices and Services highlights

  • Amazon introduced the next generation of Echo Buds, featuring an all-new design, premium audio, custom-designed Active Noise Cancellation technology, wireless charging capabilities, improved microphones, and hands-free access to Alexa.
  • Amazon announced Build It, a new Day 1 Editions program that gives customers a say in the devices Amazon builds next. The first wave of concepts included a Smart Sticky Note Printer, a Smart Nutrition Scale, and a Smart Cuckoo Clock. In just three days, the Smart Sticky Note Printer hit its pre-order goal and is being built.
  • Amazon announced new Alexa features, such as Music Sharing with Alexa, which allows users to share songs with friends and family who are Alexa contacts, and Alexa for Xbox, which gives US and Canadian customers more ways to interact with their consoles using their voice—such as asking Alexa to download games remotely through Xbox’s Game Pass service.
  • Amazon launched a new Alexa Prize TaskBot Challenge, in which university teams will compete to develop conversational AI agents to help customers complete tasks requiring multiple steps and decisions. It is the first conversational AI challenge to incorporate multimodal—voice and vision—customer experiences.
  • As part of the Fairness in AI program, the National Science Foundation and Amazon announced the next cohort of 37 researchers focused on 11 projects covering a range of topics, including: theoretical and algorithmic foundations; principles for human interaction with AI systems; technologies such as natural language understanding and computer vision; and applications including hiring decisions, education, criminal justice, and human services.
  • Ring introduced Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 and Ring Floodlight Cam Wired Pro, both featuring 3D Motion Detection and Bird’s Eye View powered by radar technology. Ring also announced several other products and features, including Ring Video Doorbell 4, Smart Responses and Geofence for compatible devices, and Ring Alarm (2nd Gen) for the UK and Europe.
  • Amazon launched the Alexa Built-in experience in Lamborghini’s Huracán EVO, the first vehicle to offer online car control capabilities with Alexa embedded. Amazon also launched the first application of the Alexa Connected Vehicle Skills API with Nissan, and Garmin announced it is the first Tier 1 automotive supplier to integrate Alexa Custom Assistant in its In-Vehicle Infotainment systems. Jeep announced Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer models will be the first to launch Fire TV for Auto, an on-the-go entertainment experience.

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