This Greedy Prime Video Move Must Go

Physical media appears headed toward 8-track tape oblivion.

Hollywood feased on profits from first the DVD and, later the Blu-ray revolutions. Sharper than VHS tapes. Brimming with video extras to sweeten the purchase.

No, “Be kind, rewind” mantras. And you can display them like your favorite books.

Now, both physical media formats have taken a back seat to digital downloads and streaming. It’s a sign of the times.

Except owning a digital download copy of your favorite films isn’t perfect. Some digital licenses come with strings attached. You might not get the uncensored version of the film in question, either.

Now, a prominent pundit is warning Prime Video buyers have something new to worry about.

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Benjamin Domenech, formerly of The Federalist and now the editor of The Transom Substack newsletter, warned X users this weekend of a troubling trend on Prime Video.

The Amazon service allows customers to “buy” videos for their collection, much like that overstuffed DVD shelf of yore. Domenech discovered something odd when he tried to watch a purchased title, though.

He had to sit through ads along the way.

This is ridiculous. Checked this morning and multiple movies I paid full price for ages ago now have ads and @amazon is requiring additional money to get rid of them. Don’t buy movies on Prime, folks. https://t.co/9pcHjq9xMv

— Benjamin Domenech (@bdomenech) May 18, 2025

Now, Prime Video recently changed its service to make subscribers pay an addition fee to remove ads from the streaming process. That’s not uncommon in video platforms today.

This is different. And Domenech wasn’t alone in his experience.

Yes. They’ll remove them for $3 more per month. It was the final straw for us. We canceled our Amazon Prime after 15 years.

— Smug the Goat (@TN_Death_Ride) May 18, 2025

Inserting ads into a title you bought is both new and troubling. 

Is this a glitch? A new policy? HIT is reaching out to Amazon Prime for comment.