The feature Prime Video needs most? A no-shop view
The feature Prime Video needs most? A no-shop view
Prime Video’s near-infinite shopping opportunities are a great way to spend money, but I’m betting customers would love to go without them.
Amazon is a shopping platform, first and foremost. That’s what the site has been since it first launched, way before anyone could pay a monthly fee for the honor of being called a Prime member. Despite all the TV, movies, music, audiobooks, and other media people can now consume in the Amazon ecosystem, the company is still primarily an e-commerce platform.
That’s something of a shame for lovers of the Prime Video streaming service. Don’t get me wrong, it can indeed be convenient to watch TV shows and movies, see a product you want in that title, and be able to buy it from the same platform, but more often than not, it just feels like whenever I use Prime Video, I’m being asked to pay for something. That’s why I think the feature Prime Video needs to add most is a no-shop view, which has no e-commerce integrations of any kind.
Prime Video has spent a lot of time and money making its content more shoppable in recent years, adding quick links for viewers who want to buy merchandise from a show or movie, or even sports teams that are playing a game on the streamer. These shopping opportunities offer varying levels of disruption from the user experience on Prime Video, but they have increased markedly.
A no-shop view would pull all buy links and other shoppable opportunities off the Prime Video interface, and allow customers to do what they came to the service to do: watch TV or movies. No doubt some viewers like having the ability to buy things from their favorite Amazon shows, but giving them the option to turn off shopping links would likely increase engagement on the streamer noticeably.
To Amazon’s credit, it has made one key move in helping to show viewers the titles they’re allowed to watch with their subscription, and don’t have to pay extra to stream. In July 2024, Amazon rolled out a Prime tab in the Prime Video interface that shows watchers only shows and movies that are included in the Prime Video subscription, and don’t cost extra.
But to be frank, this feature should have been included in Prime Video from the start. Clicking onto the Prime Video home page instead of going directly to the Prime tab shows content rows that are absolutely packed with titles you have to pay extra to stream, either by renting or “buying” them, or by adding a supplementary subscription through Prime Video and watching that way.
It’s time for Prime Video to give customers the option to truly banish all shopping opportunities from their view when using the service. Is it likely to happen? Probably not, given the revenue Amazon pulls in from its e-commerce business every year. But an optional no-shop view is the feature I want Prime Video to add the most.
Prime Video
Prime Video is a subscription video streaming service that includes on-demand access to 10,000+ movies, TV shows, and Prime Originals like “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,” “Jack Ryan,” “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “The Boys,” and more. Subscribers can also add third-party services like Max, Showtime, STARZ, and dozens more with Prime Video Channels. Prime Video also offers exclusive live access to NFL Thursday Night Football.