Germany: Amazon is not allowed to force customers to watch ads on Prime Video

[jonhohle]

Good! In the US ads were added after telling Prime members they’d get ad free content as part of their membership. I complained about this during a meeting (I worked on Prime during the Prime Video launch), but was shot down because the ads were pre-roll trailers for Amazon produced content. Of course that turned into just ads, everywhere. I’m glad the court saw it for what it was: bait and switch.

[tombert]

Yeah, ever since that change happened, I haven't logged into Prime Video. I'm paying money for a product, I shouldn't have to put up with ads too.

I understand that it's not free to produce TV shows, no free lunches and whatnot, so I understand why stuff I watch for free has ads, but if I'm paying for something I draw a line that I don't want my shit interrupted by advertisement.

It really annoyed me that Prime decided that they would just impose ads on me unless I pay them an additional $4 a month. I already pay for Prime, I already buy many products on Amazon, I don't want to pay an extra $50 a year just to watch your mediocre shows without you trying to indoctrinate me to buy more shit.

[simula67]

I am glad to hear that there was someone who argued for the right course of action in the Amazon Prime organization. I don't know why this is not being fought by other regulators. I also paid for Amazon Prime, expecting to get ad-free content, and then they started to add advertisements. This may not be fraud, but it is definitely lowering my opinion of Amazon.

[PacificSpecific]

That was the point that made me remove Amazon from my life. Obviously it was building up but kudos to Amazon for being the one to push me over the line to quit up Amazon.

[BloondAndDoom]

The irony of Amazon “empty chair in meetings” myth. When you don’t even listen actual people advocating for customers why’d you care about an imaginary person.

[Rohansi]

They still show the pre-roll trailers even if you pay extra for no ads. You can skip them but it's still ridiculous.

[hsbauauvhabzb]

Pre-roll trailers are ads.

[acaloiar]

I cancelled a 12 year old Prime account solely out of principle because of this.

[m463]

Next thing you know, they'll cover the outside of the prime 2-day shipping packages in ads.

[greatgib]

I don't like it but could almost understand ad before content.

But what I don't understand and find the most stupid is when you are forced to watch ad for the internal content. It gives me an aweful experience instead of pushing me to watch more. So makes me want to stop using the service.

The worst offender is Disney+, not only the app is the shitiest one with great pain to seek in content, but you have systematic 30 or 40s long as for content of the platform you don't care like the last woke show. The worst of the worst in that case is that they will not care to show you 100 times the exact same ad as for the same movie or show sometimes. It has no good effect except totally wasting your time and frustrating you!

[aljgz]

It should also be illegal to have ads in the Amazon marketplace (where we pay to buy products), Google/apple app store (where people already paid for a phone), Uber ride, and basically anywhere we have already paid to use something.

If this is not stopped, there's no limit, your car, TV, fridge, it will be everywhere, and it pumps more and more income away from people and products/service providers into advertisers' pockets.

[creesch]

It really should be illegal. Companies aren't going to do it themselves as it is a huge potential revenue stream.

So much so that it effectively has become the main focus of some companies who we as consumers still perceive as online stores/marketplaces. Specifically sponsored search results apparently can become a bigger income stream than the one from actual sales themselves.

Which is great for these companies, terrible for us consumers.

[aembleton]

Also it shouldn't be allowed in Supermarkets

[EvgeniyZh]

> your car, TV

yeah I hope I won't ever be shown ads on TV for which I already paid

[silisili]

I have always disliked ads, but this has slowly grown into outright unreasonable anger as the years go. I just cancel anything I'm paying for that shows intrusive ads.

I was a little worried about cancelling Amazon Prime at first, but realized I didn't -really- need some JIXFOZ branded gadgets next day, after all.

I plead with everyone who feels similarly to vote with their feet/wallet. It's the only hope of getting out of this mess.

[shakna]

Advertising is predicated on it _not_ working for everyone. Voting with your wallet is simply not enough if it can still influence others.

This is a field that requires regulation to see any difference.

[harry8]

If pleading is the only way out of the mess, learn to tolerate the mess.

[louthy]

> cancelling Amazon Prime at first, but realized I didn't -really- need some JIXFOZ branded gadgets next day, after all.

The problem with cancelling Prime is the unrelenting haranguing to re-sign up and the clearly punitive delivery charges. You get adverts from cancelling due to adverts and end up paying more.

I’ve just started to focus my purchases at specialist UK stores, rather than defaulting to Amazon for everything.

[noodlebird]

if you're based in germany and have had prime before february 5th, 2024, you might be eligible for compensation. here is the page of the consumer rights commitee where you can take part (don't fret if you get physical mail from the federal bureau of justice a few days later): https://www.verbraucherzentrale.de/wissen/vertraege-reklamat...

[nephihaha]

I agree with this decision. Now onto the other problem... Why are you selling me a subscription which doesn't give you access to most of the content on your site? I was on Amazon Prime recently and most stuff had a padlock on it. Some of it was very old, i.e. thirty years older or more.

[danielbln]

That's a common (but no less frustrating) model, Apple does it that way. Certain things are included in the sub, but you can also purchase things that aren't. At least Apple makes it reasonably easy to filter and find stuff, Amazons UX is a fever dream.

[vander_elst]

IANAL, but it seems it's a technicality on how the conditions of the contract changed? IIUC they forcibly changed the contract without notice. If they would have sent a notice first and then let the consumers decide whether to get out or move on with the new contact and new conditions, it would have been fine to serve ads. The title seems like a clickbait.

[amai]

Like the same issue with Sky PayTV in Germany 10 years ago? https://www.anwaltsregister.de/Rechtsfragen/Sonderkuendigung...

[tgsovlerkhgsel]

I wonder if they will also be forced to compensate customers (e.g. by having to pay out the ad revenue to them). I think it's a real possibility; without it, companies have little reason not to try this kind of thing over and over - either they get away with it, or they get away with it temporarily.

[rdtsc]

I'd say this is a victory for consumers though I suspect Amazon will just raise the prices of Prime by $5/month or whatever people pay "extra" to get rid of ads, and just claim that it's part of the "regulatory environment" in Germany.

[BloondAndDoom]

That’s better since it’s honest offering, and I think they’d still lose money. It’s not like there aren’t enough streaming services to compete with

[munksbeer]

I think it's great that this was challenged, but won't the outcome just be that they switch to use Netflix tactics? They'll increase the Prime fee for existing "no ads" customers (allowed), and offer a lower "with ads" tier?

[Too]

Is anyone paying for Prime just for streaming? I always saw it as a nice bonus included with free shipping and all the other discounts you get on Amazon, it breaks even very quickly. It cost half of a Netflix subscription. The content is also half the quality, so it’s not like I would like to pay anything for it anyway. I hate ads as much as anyone, after the ad introductions I just stopped slop watching.

[camillomiller]

Oh look, regulation! So weird that it works for the consumer, right?

[oaiey]

That is neither regulation (just standard contract law) and IMHO a formality, because Amazon could have just formulated it differently: hey we terminate your contract, next offer: same thing with ads (vs. Hey we change the contract for profit).

This is not a structural victory just a badly executed change.

[Atlas667]

Amazon probably weren't paying the politicians enough money so the politicians aren't gonna let them screw the consumer!

Ah, capitalism, with your endless power imbalance.

[vjvjvjvjghv]

We don’t want socialism with its burdensome regulations!

[didip]

This is good. It upsets me that I am already a Prime member but I still have to pay on top of that. I actually prefer they increase the price but bundle everything in 1 membership.

[pjmlp]

This is why I never paid the additional payment they are asking for, and if they make Prime Video extra, good riddance.

[ScoobleDoodle]

I paid the additional payment because I hate watching ads and wanted to watch some series without it. Now Amazon Prime Video has made some ads show even while having this additional payment!

[vjvjvjvjghv]

I so much hate it that we have built an economy where companies believe the best way forward is to cram ads into everything instead of building better products.

[chroma205]

> I so much hate it that we have built an economy where companies believe the best way forward is to cram ads into everything instead of building better products.

Blame the consumers.

They don’t want to pay for monthly subscriptions because “economy is tough”

[SecretDreams]

Good?

[eru]

It was already legal for customers to buy ad free products and it was legal for companies to sell them.

In any case, the headline oversells the ruling: it's only about changing the conditions for existing customers.

Amazon can let the old contracts run out and sign up people under a new scheme, that allows them to show ads.

[almosthere]

force? turn it off or use another service?

we got into such a place where we don't encourage competition.

[clickety_clack]

In an open market, customers should be able to make informed decisions. Lying to customers about your product distorts the market. People may have switched from other services to prime expecting that there would be no ads. That undermines the business of those competitors, and may drive them out so that they are no longer available if you want to switch back.