100 Million Prime members (disclosure: I'm one.)

[CWatkinsNash]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

SlingTV doesn't really seem all that different from the cable companies. You have the same bundles of channels (some wanted, some not) and getting them requires a bill about the size of a cable bill

But it offers something that my area tv providers do not - I can cancel and restart at will, completely online, with no annoying "retention specialists" to deal with. That, and not needing to have a line installed, or a box, etc adds a lot of value. I mostly watch OTA tv + Netflix (and more recently, Hulu, thanks to their new bundle offer with Spotify), but once in a while I feel like watching some cable channels, so I can just restart my Sling service then turn it off again when I'm done for a while.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by silverraven

And my cable company raises the cost of my internet exactly the same amount as basic cable if I cancel basic cable. Soooo....
S

Yeah, that's the boat I'm in. I was going to cut the cord a few months back. But Comcast has a deal where high speed internet and 100+ channels is $90 a month, but internet alone is something like $75 a month. So for $15 a month you get a better deal keeping cable than you would dumping it.

I think the cable companies are battling cord cutting.

[ZodWallop]

And to get back on track, I've noticed I use Prime Video more than I use the free shipping. I don't really buy a lot of stuff from Amazon, but for me, Prime is worth it for the video service (yet I probably never would have signed up for Prime for the video service alone).

I also recently tried Prime Pantry (since they keep jamming those credits down my throat when I do buy something with 'No Rush') and it feels a bit like a rip-off. A Prime Pantry box is $5.99 shipping, even if you're a Prime member. Prime Pantry feels a bit like the $25.00 for free shipping that they use on non-Prime customers. You're paying $5.99 shipping, so you might as well fill up the box. And if you decide to buy, say, Method All-Purpose Cleaner from Amazon, you can't opt out of Prime Pantry. They push it as a benefit, but to me it feels like a way to make Prime less prime.

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

That too is changing.
ESPN has a standalone streaming service for $5 a month.
Makes it easier for streamers to do ESPN-free bundles.

That's not really ESPN, it's more like ESPN bonus content but not the actual channel.

[GA Russell]

My next hundred for Prime will be due the first week of next month. I believe that it saves me money, but as Catlady says, not having to think about minimum purchases for a year is worth something. And like Paul, the delayed shipping has "purchased" many of my eBooks.

I sometimes enjoy listening to the music. I have never watched Prime Video or any of its competitors.

[Fbone]

Originally Posted by GlenBarrington

Yeah, I looked into 'cutting the cord' about 6 months ago. And the prices to get the things I wanted was about the same as cable.

Especially when I have to add $50 for internet and $30 for phone.

[crich70]

Prime has a $12.99/ month option which is affordable. Maybe you spend a bit more than an annual subscription, but when on a limited budget it's easier to manage.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by crich70

Prime has a $12.99/ month option which is affordable. Maybe you spend a bit more than an annual subscription, but when on a limited budget it's easier to manage.

Turn it off an on at need also works.
They also offer discounted subscriptions to certain classes of people with budgetary restraints.

https://www.tomsguide.com/us/what-is...ews-22156.html

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/amazon-...n-food-stamps/

They also allow the sharing of an account with a family member (or trusted friend) with most perks tracked separately. (I do it with my sister. She's a certified chef so it works out well; I share prime, she shares her creations when the itch hits.)

Prime isn't for everybody but they do try to bring in as many people as possible.

[booklover6]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

The reason I'm not watching the new Star Trek series is because CBS put it on their paid service and I refuse to pay extra beyond cable and Prime Video.

I'll do without rather than succumb to this new paid model.

SAME. I was disappointed when I found out it was only on cbs all access.

I pay for Xfinity cable/phone/internet, took a break from Netflix but back on it for now at the cheapest streaming option, and have Hulu free with student Spotify at least for the rest of the year.

My Prime sub is up at the beginning of May. Already decided not to renew. None of us have used Prime video much, though my daughter and I have been watching Sopranos, we are only on season one. LOL. Eventually it will be elsewhere, like Netflix, I presume. We can wait.

With Xfinity, I can get to Netflix without having to switch over to a streaming stick. That's a big plus. That's another reason we have hardly even used Prime Video.

Prime music, not worth $100 a year for the minimum titles in the catalog. Shipping, we'll get by without it. So much of Amazon's catalog is now packed with non-Amazon sellers it can be risky even shopping on there. (Same with many other company sites). I'll just go to the darn store.

ETA - according to my Amazon account, I haven't actually PAID for Prime since 2013. Probably something to do with the 3 Amazon Phones I got LOL. Looks like I might be able to get the student account to cover the rest of the year for free. Cool. FFS- no prime video for student free trial members. Figures!

[frahse]

Originally Posted by crich70

Prime has a $12.99/ month option which is affordable. Maybe you spend a bit more than an annual subscription, but when on a limited budget it's easier to manage.

I looked into that once with the idea of only subscribing for 2 months around Christmas and one or two other periods of time during the year for a total of 4 months ($52.).

After studying my purchase habits and frequency I decided not to.

I like the ease of returning though I don't do it much. I have never had the slightest problem. Even on that strange "halogen convection cooker."

[fjtorres]

On the importance of Prime and streaming services in general:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/comp...cid=spartandhp

But the cable business is floundering. Nearly half of adults ages 22 to 45 didn’t watch any broadcast or cable TV in 2017, according to a study by the marketing agency Hearts & Science, and the number of so-called cord cutters abandoning cable is growing by the year.

Nobody benefits more from the modern cable-TV industry than Disney—or has more to lose from its erosion. In its latest fiscal year, Disney made about 40 percent of its total revenue, or about $24 billion, from its television networks, including ESPN, the Disney Channel, and ABC. But since 2010, viewership for traditional television has fallen 51 percent among Americans ages 12 to 24, according to Nielsen. This decay will accelerate as Disney’s streaming service gets off the ground and fewer people feel the need to pay for cable when they can subscribe instead to Netflix and Disneyflix (and Amazon Prime Video, and HBO Go). For young people in particular, a cable subscription may soon seem as antique as going to the opera.

The Prime video perk is only going to become more important as time goes on.

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

On the importance of Prime and streaming services in general:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/comp...cid=spartandhp





The Prime video perk is only going to become more important as time goes on.

In order for cable cutting to work, people still need to get broadband internet service from somewhere. As this thread shows, for cable companies, many people still use them for internet service. Cord cutting simply forces the big media companies such as Disney to move to a different business model that deals directly with consumers rather than dealing with the cable companies.

It's a business model that many of them are struggling with as everyone wants the whole pie. We went through it with the music companies.

[Froide]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

I like Prime Video. I cancelled Netflix in favor of Prime.

Reading this statement quickened my breath, which made me LOL at myself. If reading it yesterday, while wearing pearls, I'd have clutched them! I like Prime Video but apparently loooove Netflix.

[DuckieTigger]

Originally Posted by pwalker8

In order for cable cutting to work, people still need to get broadband internet service from somewhere. As this thread shows, for cable companies, many people still use them for internet service. Cord cutting simply forces the big media companies such as Disney to move to a different business model that deals directly with consumers rather than dealing with the cable companies.

It's a business model that many of them are struggling with as everyone wants the whole pie. We went through it with the music companies.

You are confusing a cable company with cable cutting. Two different things. It would only take a new kind of ISP to offer a bundle for internet + streaming service(s) for cheaper than an artificially inflated unbundled internet from traditional cable company.

[GlenBarrington]

Originally Posted by frahse

I like the ease of returning though I don't do it much. I have never had the slightest problem. Even on that strange "halogen convection cooker."

Yes, I just bought a smartwatch, and I wasn't sure it would work with my phone in an adequate manner. So I opted to buy from Amazon, even though it was roughly $10 more costly than another vendor with free shipping (AND Azn charged me the state tax!). The primary reason was that I had a higher confidence in Amazon, regarding returns.

The truth is, internet purchases are much easier to deal with when using Amazon.