Prime Video to Make NFL Black Friday Game Shoppable, but Vows to Keep Game and Viewers as Focus
As you’re sitting down with a plate full of Thanksgiving leftovers to watch the New York Jets take on the Miami Dolphins on Prime Video this Black Friday, Nov. 24, you’d better keep a hand free to use the remote, because you might just see a holiday deal too good to ignore flash across the screen.
Amazon is looking to more fully integrate its e-commerce platform with Prime Video, at least for a day. During a conference call with media members this week, Amazon’s VP of Prime Video and global sports head Jay Marine said that the company was already thinking of ways to bring ads to people watching its NFL Black Friday game, though it would be careful to put the user experience first.
“We’ll have some interesting things for Black Friday where we think it will be additive for fans given the celebration of that day,” Marine said. “And the key part is you need to keep fans front and center, and the game front and center. There’s a lot of things we could do in terms [of] up on the screen.”
It makes complete sense for Amazon to make shoppable ads a part of its Black Friday NFL experience, especially as the game will be made available for free to all viewers, whether they subscribe to Prime Video or not. It’s an experiment for the league and the company; this is the first time in NFL history that a game will be played on the day after Thanksgiving, which has thus far been primarily reserved for bargain shopping and a handful of college football games.
Younger viewers came to Prime Video in droves to watch “Thursday Night Football” last season, despite ratings for that package of games being down more than 40% as compared to 2021. That 18-to-34-year-old demographic is crucial for advertisers, who are already licking their chops thinking of the potential that shoppable ads might have alongside a product like the NFL, especially on a day which people are already conditioned to think of as a holiday shopping event.
If the company sees good numbers from its Black Friday advertising, fans could see more shoppable ads next to other sporting events on Prime Video. During the same media call, Marine said that advertisers were flocking to live sports as dual strikes from Hollywood’s writers’ and actors’ unions are putting the fall TV schedule in doubt. He also said that Amazon would be “aggressive” in pursuing more sports rights in the future.
Amazon has been tinkering with the integration of advertising and merchandising with Prime Video for a while now. Its spy/thriller series “Citadel” featured shoppable ads that allowed customers to pause video playback, click a link or scan a QR code and be taken to a digital store where they could buy products related to the show.
If you’re in the market for a new Aaron Rodgers or Tua Tagovailoa jersey, you may be better off waiting until Black Friday when their teams clash on Prime Video. There’s a good chance you’ll be shown an ad for team merchandise that will come with a heavy discount.
Amazon Prime Video
Amazon 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 Amazon Prime Video Channels. Prime Video also offers exclusive live access to NFL Thursday Night Football.