Prime Video’s Latest Upgrade Comes With One Major Catch
Prime Video’s Latest Upgrade Comes With One Major Catch
Michael HeinSat, June 13, 2026 at 8:06 PM UTC
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Image via Prime Video
Amazon's new ad-free streaming upgrade comes with a lot of perks for subscribers, but most of the important ones were included at no additional cost in the company's previous arrangement. Fans have been furious about Prime Video's switch to an ad-supported model for standard Prime members, but some have paid the additional fee to skip commercials anyway. As it is now, the company is offering a handful of perks aside from skipping ads to try to justify the cost of "Prime Video Ultra." No matter how it is packaged, it's clear that the streaming industry wants to claw back features that used to be standard and upsell them as luxuries.
Prime Video introduced "limited ads" to its standard service back in January 2024, offering subscribers an ad-free upgrade at the cost of $2.99 per month. In March of this year, the company revamped its ad-free tier, calling it "Prime Video Ultra." The newly-branded service not only skips the commercial breaks, it also includes 4K UHD playback, Dolby Atmos audio, more downloadable titles, and the ability to stream on five devices concurrently.
It's nice that users are getting something aside from the ad-free feature that used to come standard, but for many, it's still not enough to make up for the backtracking. The loss of trust is clear in every conversation about streaming these days, and it's not just Amazon. The streaming industry seems to regret its earlier approach, but it's not easy to take something back once you've offered it.
Prime Video Ultra's New Features Are Just Distractions
Image via Prime Video
Prime Video used to be one of the easiest streaming services to justify paying for, as it included all the benefits of Amazon Prime. When the streamer added commercials in 2024, it was a nuisance, but many users felt they were already paying for Prime, not the streamer, so there was no point in upgrading. Still, the name "Prime Video Ad-Free" served as a constant reminder of the price hike, so it makes sense that the company wanted to rebrand the option to "Prime Video Ultra."
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That distraction tactic also applies to the new features Ultra comes with. For film buffs, things like 4K UHD video and Dolby Atmos sound are great, but for the average viewer, they may not even be usable. The hardware required to enjoy those features is not cheap, not easy to set up, and it risks causing a lot of confusion if other people are handling your remote controls. The downloads are a nice bonus — Prime Video Ultra now has 100 downloadable titles, where Prime Video Ad-Free had only 25, but for those that don't travel or don't watch TV or movies when they do, it's useless.
Aside from skipping ads, Ultra's best feature is the increase in concurrent users. Prime Video Ultra allows for five different devices to use the service at the same time on the same account, which is a stark contrast from streamers like Netflix, Disney+, and HBO Max, who are all trying to crack down on password-sharing. However, once again — if we look back far enough, this is a feature that used to come standard with every streaming service, not a real upgrade.
The 'Streaming Bubble' Burst a Long Time Ago
Image via Amazon/MGM Studios/ Courtesy Everett Collection
If this is simply the cost of doing business, there's not much we can do about it. It's not just that ads are an extra source of income for the streamers, or that they pay more reliably — ironically, ad-supported streaming helps these services hold onto more subscribers for longer. Back in 2024, then-Disney CEO Bob Iger spoke to CNBC about the introduction of ads on the service. He pointed out that most of Disney+'s new subscribers were coming in at the ad-supported tier, which to him meant that fans wanted the cheaper option, even it came with commercial breaks.
From the consumer side of that bargain, it doesn't look so altruistic. These days, it's not uncommon to hear people complain that it was simpler and even cheaper in the days of cable, when everything was packaged together neatly. That may be true in some cases, but the real issue might be the lack of trust in these services. After years of watching each streamer take away features that fans used to enjoy and then offer them back at a premium cost, it's understandable for subscribers to feel like they've been cheated. Overcoming this blow to morale may be the biggest hurdle the streaming industry has to face.
Source: “AOL Money”
