Prime Video’s ad-supported tier now reaches an average 19 million customers per month in the UK, marking a year since Amazon announced it was introducing ads to the streaming platform.

The figure represents the average number of people who potentially view an ad on the platform per month. This is the first time Amazon has publicly shared how many customers its ads reach.

Announced at the 2024 Amazon Upfront today (2 October), the business claimed Prime Video viewers spend 36% more on the Amazon UK website compared to the average Amazon customer’s spend, while 52% of Prime Video viewers do not watch any paid linear TV in the UK.

“By combining award-winning TV series and films, billions of first-party signals, and leading ad tech, we are helping brands deliver relevant ad experiences at an entirely new scale,” said Amazon Ads UK managing director Phil Christer.

“These campaigns aren’t limited to brands that sell in our store either. We are able to help brands understand the impact of their upper funnel streaming TV campaigns on lower funnel outcomes like sales and sign-ups, regardless of where the customer ends their journey.”

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According to MTM’s Screenthink survey, over 90% of UK Amazon Prime Video subscribers are on the default ad-supported plan, with just 3% paying the additional £2.99 per month to remove ads. Prime users now account for 53% of all streaming video-on-demand (SVOD) with ad subscriptions within the UK.

According to TV ratings agency Barb’s Q2 Establishment Survey, the ad-supported tiers from Netflix and Disney+ reach 2.78 million and 820,000 UK homes, respectively. 

Case studies

Amazon also revealed some of the results of its campaigns for advertisers. Toy company Hasbro wanted to connect with customers “more effectively” across different stages of the purchasing journey and create more personalised, data-driven campaigns.

Hasbro deployed a full-funnel strategy, which blended upper-funnel Prime Video ads with lower-funnel sponsored brand placements for a six-week Peppa Pig campaign.

Using first-party signals, Amazon claimed Hasbro was able to achieve a 21% year-on-year increase in branded searches and an 18% increase in sales for Peppa Pig, with 68% of these purchases being made by new-to-brand customers driven by the campaign.

Likewise, Beiersdorf wanted to drive awareness of its Nivea Sun UV Face Cream product and its skin protection qualities among UK consumers during the key summer holiday period. A third-party measurement study found the average attention score of these ads was over 50% greater than linear and on-demand TV benchmarks.

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Amazon also unveiled a suite of new ad formats launching in the UK in 2025, including interactive and shoppable ads.

These new solutions include interactive video ads, which allow customers to engage with a brand by adding the advertised item directly to their Amazon cart. The company is also rolling out interactive pause ads, which enable viewers to discover and engage with brands when they pause their show or movie, and shoppable carousel ads, which allow customers to browse and purchase multiple related products during ad breaks on Prime Video.

“These new ad formats enable viewers to learn more about, and make a purchase from, your brand without ever having to leave the viewing experience,” said Christer.

“This not only makes it easier for Prime members, but it also helps brands to unlock insights into lower-funnel interactions and better inform their campaign strategies.”