To take on the most popular streaming platform Netflix, American e-commerce behemoth Amazon has been gearing up to launch its video streaming service ‘Prime Video’ in India. But it seems the company is not only focused on debuting and rivaling Netflix in India but also across every other country in the world.
Amazon Prime Video, as teased by Jeff Bezos via a tweet, is looking to end the worldwide domination of Netflix with its international debut sometime next month. This surprising and secretive announcement comes on the heels of the release of the Top Gear spin-off series “The Grand Tour,” starring the dynamic trio Jeremy Clarkson, James May, and Richard Hammond.
Long wait is over… Clarkson, Hammond, May are back… #TheGrandTour premieres tonight in UK, US, DE, JP. And globally in Dec. pic.twitter.com/dfQjGGuDFW
— Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) November 17, 2016
Under its Prime subscription service, Amazon enables users to stream video content on its platform. This streaming service is currently available only in five countries, those being the U.S., UK, Germany, Austria and Japan. Prime Video service is expected to debut in the Indian market by the end of this month. For the past couple months, the Indian arm of the company has been forging partnership with local creators, movie production houses and even animation creators for kid-friendly content.
The release of the new automotive-focused show ‘The Grand Tour’ has been accompanied with a YouTube video, where the trio mentions that Amazon plans to make the show available to all fans across the globe. This is a strong hint and is further accompanied with the exact number of countries, i.e 200, where the Prime Video service will debut in December. When this service is available to these countries, they will right away be able to access old episodes as well as new episodes every Friday.
In addition, the Wall Street Journal cites sources privy of the matter to report that the Prime Video service is “on the verge of a massive global rollout.”
Though it seems that international audiences will gain access to just one series — The Grand Tour — on release, Amazon has most likely planned to capitalize on the popularity of the trio and the show. The reports are apparently true as the company has recently rolled out the video service to user in Australia – who have access to the web interface but not the app. It is also said to be working on expanding its video libraries, which might become available to all international markets over the span of next few months.
For those unaware, The Grand Tour starring the infamous Top Gear trio is now streaming on Amazon because Clarkson was sacked from the previous show for his ‘unprovoked actions’ towards another Top Gear crew member. His departure from the series was met with anger from long-time fans and another departure in the form of Hammond. And finally, May also joined the trio to create this grand concept of touring the world while checking out brand-spanking new automobiles and interacting with fans in a giant dome-shaped tent.
