Fans left devastated as Amazon streaming service shuts for good

Amazon is closing its free, ad-supported streaming service.

Freevee – home to original games like Jury Duty, Bosch: Legacy and Judy Justice – will close within weeks.

But fans can still watch the shows. Amazon is making the move to have all its content fall under the Prime Video brand.

The change means that all Freevee shows, including Tribunal Justice and Neighbors, will be available to watch on Prime Video.

The good news is that they’re free to watch even for non-Prime members, under the Free Watch section.

Streaming platforms are increasingly finding ways to reduce costs, and Amazon’s decision to phase out Freevee accomplishes this on multiple fronts.

By discontinuing the Freevee brand, Amazon can reduce marketing costs and avoid the ongoing costs of supporting a separate app on different smart TVs and streaming devices.

This streamlining allows Amazon to focus its resources on its core Prime Video platform, making it easier to manage and promote content in a single destination.

The transition will be rolled out in Freevee’s current territories – the US, UK, Germany and Austria – in the coming weeks.

Amazon assures that no job losses are expected as the Freevee team was already integrated with Amazon MGM Studios and Prime Video’s business group.

It’s all about Prime Video doubling down as platform that targets both Prime members and non-members, creating a one-stop destination for both ad-supported and subscription-based viewing.

Unlike a standard streaming service, Prime Video offers a range of other content types, from movies you can rent or buy to a variety of free, ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channels.

Non-subscribers also have access to popular Prime Originals, with options to watch select seasons or episodes, including hits like The Summer I Turned Pretty, the first three episodes of The Boys and the first episode of Fallout – all without having to pay for a subscription. need.

Speculation about Freevee’s future began late last year when Amazon announced the introduction of ads on Prime Video starting in January 2024, blurring the lines between Prime Video’s subscription-based service and Freevee’s ad-supported model.

Freevee’s origins date back to 2019, initially launched by IMDb as Freedive before being rebranded as IMDb TV, and eventually Freevee.

With a lineup that included scripted hits like Jury Duty, which earned four Emmy nominations, and Bosch: Legacy, the platform was successful, reportedly amassing a user base that tripled to 65 million between 2020 and 2022.

The gradual shift of Freevee content to Prime Video began earlier this year when series like American Rust: Broken Justice and On Call moved to the platform.

The third season of Bosch: Legacy will also share streaming via both Freevee and Prime Video.

For Amazon, this consolidation strengthens Prime Video’s hybrid model, creating a one-stop destination for both ad-supported and subscription-based viewing.

Amazon first introduced ads at the end of January this year, showing the commercials at the beginning, middle and end of each program or movie. In the photo: the summer in which I became beautiful

Freevee will close in a few weeks

Freevee shows, including Tribunal Justice and Neighbors, will be available to watch on Prime Video

Meanwhile, streaming services are taking increasingly strict action against sharing passwords.

Max is the latest – following on from Netflix and Disney+.

But the streamer behind House of Dragon and The Penguin will start with a softer approach than its rivals.

Those two streamers are much stricter. They monitor where users watch programs – and interrupt them if they regularly come from different addresses.

Gunnar Wiedenfels, chief financial officer of parent company Warner Bros Discovery, said in a statement revenue calling that Max would start his crackdown with ‘very soft messages’.

It will encourage members who share bills with other households to ‘pay a little more’.

This soft, gentle approach will continue in the coming months. After that, the company will take more extreme measures, such as limiting access to users within a single household.

Meanwhile, last month it emerged that Amazon is about to roll out even MORE ads on Prime Video – and users who don’t want that will have to pay extra every month