Amazon says its media moves are working

Amazon wants you to know it’s just as serious about movies as it is about two-day shipping.

In 2020, the company spent $11B on original and licensed video and music content. In 2021, that was up to $13B. Last year, spend increased again to $16.6B.

On Amazon’s Q4 earnings call, CFO Brian Olsavsky said these investments are driving new Prime memberships, and CEO Andy Jassy emphasized that the price for some standalone streamers “is more than what  Prime [costs a consumer] today.”

Food for thought

As Amazon invests more in media, bringing a consumer media app under its wing could pour lighter fluid onto an already hot TV-to-toilet-paper flywheel. Take Snapchat, for instance:

• It reaches 75% of 13- to 34-year-olds — AKA trendy impulse buyers — in countries representing 50%+ of digital ad spend.
• Snapchat’s current CFO was VP of finance for Amazon’s global Digital Video business.
• Snapchat’s AR features have powered millions of interactive content and shopping experiences for brands like Disney and Walmart.

Sounds pretty Amazonian to us. Oh wait, it is.