Inflation-related adjustment: Amazon makes Prime subscriptions more expensive in Germany

Like other streaming providers, Amazon is continuously expanding its range.

Inflation-related adjustment: Amazon makes Prime subscriptions more expensive in Germany

Like other streaming providers, Amazon is continuously expanding its range. Combined with inflation, this is also noticeable for customers. The service will be slightly more expensive monthly.

Amazon is making its Prime subscription offer more expensive in Germany. Monthly payment will cost EUR 8.99 instead of the previous EUR 7.99 and EUR 89.90 per year instead of the previous EUR 69. Amazon justified the price increase with "general and significant cost changes due to inflation, which are based on external circumstances beyond our control".

In the UK, the third largest market, fees will be increased by 20 percent, in Spain, Italy and France Prime members will have to pay between 39 and 43 percent more per year. The changes will take effect on September 15 for new customers or subscription renewals.

In the announcement on Tuesday, the world's largest online retailer also pointed out that it was the first increase in Germany since 2017 and that the offer had been expanded in video streaming, among other things. Prime is an important customer retention tool for Amazon. Subscriber customers get free shipping from Amazon and participating retailers on the platform, even without a minimum order value, and can also access video and music streaming, among other things. In its home market of the USA, Amazon had already announced a price increase from 119 dollars (around 116 euros) to 139 dollars (136 euros) with annual payment in February.

With the price increase this year, Amazon is ranked behind other streaming providers. Recently there had been a lot of frustration among football fans because DAZN had also significantly increased its prices for existing customers. The cost of a monthly subscription had practically doubled, rising from €14.99 to €29.99. The cheapest contract for one year costs 274.99 euros instead of 149.99 euros, but is only valid until the end of July. The cheapest option of a pure DAZN subscription costs 24.99 euros per month with a contract for one year.

Customers can also adapt to change at Netflix. The company is working on a number of measures to increase its subscriber base and revenue. These include launching a cheaper ad-supported version of the service in early 2023 and cracking down on password sharing. The company is also trying to cut costs. Netflix last increased the prices in January 2021.