If You're a Media Company, Amazon Has Its Sights on You - The UpStream

If You're a Media Company, Amazon Has Its Sights on You

posted Sunday Aug 19, 2018 by Scott Ertz

If You're a Media Company, Amazon Has Its Sights on You

Amazon has a fairly large presence in the media market even if they do lag behind in all of their markets. Prime Video doesn't quite compete with Netflix or Hulu. Amazon Music doesn't quite compete with Spotify or Apple Music. Even Fire TV doesn't quite compete with Chromecast. If Amazon has their way, that might be about to change.

Amazon Music

The company has decided to put a big focus on this brand. They want to turn it from a second tier option into a direct competitor to the larger Spotify and Apple Music services. Being as the company has both a music streaming service and a smart speaker, they are hoping to encourage people to think of them as one and not, as most people think, a way to consume Spotify. They are planning TV, radio, online and billboard ads to promote the music service and its natural pairing with Alexa. In addition to offering Prime Music for free, the company will also begin a campaign offering Music Unlimited for $3.99 rather than $7.99 per month if used with an Echo speaker.

Fire TV DVR

While the company currently offers the Fire TV Stick and Fire TV Edition smart TVs, there is another market that is being skipped: live TV. To fill this need, Amazon is reportedly working on a new set-top box, dubbed Fire TV DVR (codenamed Frank). This product would compete directly with TiVo and Slingbox, giving you the ability to record live TV and stream it to a phone, computer or tablet. It would likely also offer its recording capabilities for Amazon Channels service. It will likely premiere along with a refresh of the Fire TV Stick product, bringing new features to the whole lineup.

Amazon Prime Video

One of the lesser-known, but better benefits of Amazon Prime, is Prime Video. Through the service, you can watch original content, like documentaries, movies, and series. Your ability to watch this content might be about to expand, though, as Amazon is reportedly in talks to purchase Landmark Theaters from Mark Cuban. While the deal is a bit of a longshot, such a relationship would give Amazon an easy way to show their original content in physical theaters, without the need to work on distribution licensing.

It is believed that there are 2 other companies bidding against Amazon for the company, which would give its new owners access to 27 major markets in the US. The purchase would not be out of order for Amazon, who purchased Whole Foods for $14 billion, and his toyed with physical retail stores. There is no telling if Prime subscribers will get any special treatment at the new theaters, but based on our Whole Foods experience, it's a safe bet to say yes.

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