Amazon is now offering video streamers the opportunity to buy or rent titles from the Prime Video app, in a major shift in policy.
Until now Amazon had refused to bow to Apple’s habit of swallowing 30% of all in-app purchases made via apps, meaning you could only watch titles you’d purchased through other means or were available through the Prime Video streaming library.
Much like the Kindle app, Amazon had directed potential shoppers to the web browser in order to complete the purchase, rather than offer up the cut to Apple.
Now that has changed, as a tipster for The Verge has discovered, with the app now informing users they can “Browse, rent, or buy new release movies, popular TV shows, and more — now within the app.”
The change affects the Prime Video app on iPad, iPhone and Apple TV, but it’s not clear what has motivated the shift.
Prices remain the same, so the company isn’t passing the 30% fee on to consumers, while it’s also possible that Amazon has come to an arrangement with Apple over their cut.
Amazon and Apple have been playing a little nicer of late. Prime Video was absent from iOS and tvOS for the longest time, while Amazon refused to sell the Apple TV hardware for a while.
The ice may have melted further with the launch of the Apple TV app for the Amazon Fire TV devices, which means those within that ecosystem can easily tune into Apple originals.
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It’s possible the two companies have made a trade-off here, which means Amazon won’t be coughing up the full 30% for selling TV shows and movies on the rival platform. So far, neither company has responded to requests for comment.
There’s very little available on Amazon that Apple doesn’t sell through its own stores, but users might be able to pick and choose between various offers and bargains moving forward.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
