Amazon already has a video streaming service, but its only open to Prime subscribers, who now have to pay $99 per year for the privilege. It has been reported countless times that the company might be working on a music streaming service. While that particular claim hasn’t been denied as yet, Amazon has flat out denied a recent report which claimed that it is developing a free video streaming service.
Earlier this week, the Wall Street Journal reported that Amazon is working on a free ad-supported video streaming service. Apparently through the service Amazon was to offer video and music content to all users, not just Prime subscribers. Even its original programming was expected to be available for streaming through the free service.
The Journal claimed that Amazon’s new service might be launched in the coming months, though it did caution that they company may scrap the plans altogether if they don’t make sense. In a statement provided to Variety, Amazon denies the claims, and says that while it experiments with new things, it has “no plans to offer a free streaming-media service.”
Next week Amazon is due to make an announcement about its video business. Presumably its much rumored set-top box is finally going to be unveiled. It can’t be said for sure if Amazon will consider going down the free ad-supported streaming service route in the future, but if it does, it will be able to disrupt a market that’s dominated by the likes of Netflix and Hulu.
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