MUMBAI, India--(BUSINESS WIRE)--(NASDAQ:AMZN)—Amazon.in today announced the launch of Amazon Prime Video, offering Prime members in India the largest selection of new release Bollywood and regional Indian blockbusters, Hollywood movies and day-after-broadcast US TV shows, kids’ programming and, available for the first time in India, award-winning Amazon Original Series. In addition, Amazon announced it has started production of new Indian Amazon Original Series featuring top Indian talent and filmmakers, which will also be available exclusively for Prime members. With the launch of Prime Video, Amazon Prime members in India will enjoy unlimited streaming video, ad-free and on-demand, at no additional cost to their ₹499 annual Prime membership, the equivalent of just ₹41.50 a month. To sign-up for a 30-day free trial of Prime membership, customers can visit www.PrimeVideo.com or download the Amazon Prime Video app today.
“We are thrilled to unveil Prime Video in India—with the largest selection of ad-free, exclusive new release Indian and Hollywood movies and US TV shows and award-winning Amazon Original Series, Prime Video is an awesome service for anyone who loves movies and TV shows; and we’re just getting started.” said Nitesh Kripalani, Director and Country Head, Amazon Video India. “Prime members can enjoy reliable, high-quality playback of some of the best shows and movies available including brand new Amazon Original Series with top Indian stars and filmmakers over the next year. This is on top of the benefits Prime members already know and love—unlimited free one-day and two-day delivery on India’s largest selection of products.”
“India has one of the richest and most vibrant entertainment industries in the world—Amazon is energized by the talent and the passion of India’s film industry and is excited to be making multiple Indian original shows already, with more to come,” said Roy Price, Vice President and Head of Amazon Studios. “It’s no secret that Amazon is making a big investment in India and is happy to take Original content, created by Indian talent, to audiences worldwide. We are also making a commitment to our Indian customers to deliver high-quality, binge-worthy shows that they’ll love to watch.”
Amazon Indian Originals
Amazon today announced that it has started production of multiple new Indian Original Shows featuring some of India’s most loved creators and talent, exclusively for Amazon Prime Video. The Amazon Original Indian Series will include diverse genres such as drama, comedy, psychological thriller, biopics, period/action, mythological/fantasy, sports drama and political satire. The new shows (working titles) and creators associated with them include:
- Bodhidharma: Master of Shaolin | Equinox Features | Ram Madhvani, Prasoon Joshi and Sunil Doshi
- Breathe | Abundantia Entertainment | Vikram Malhotra, starring R Madhvan and Amit Sadh
- The Ministry | AIB and OML
- Powerplay |Excel Media & Entertainment | Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar starring Vivek Oberoi, Richa Chadda and others
- Mirzapur | Excel Media & Entertainment | Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar
- Stardust | Phantom Films| Vikramaditya Motwane, Madhu Mantena, Anurag Kashyap and Vikas Bahl
- The Family Man | D2R Films | DK Krishna and Raj Nidimoru
- Vishpuri | Big Synergy | Vikas Bahl, Vikramaditya Motwane, Anurag Kashyap and Madhu Mantena
- Made in Heaven Excel Media & Entertainment and Tiger Baby| Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti.
Amazon also announced collaborations with authors, producers, writers and directors to develop several new series. The list includes Sujoy Ghosh and Hyunwoo Thomas Kim (Kross Pictures India), Ali Abbas Zafar, Himanshu Kishan Mehra, Sanjeev Gupta (Offside Entertainment), Rajat Arora (Funk Ur Blues), Karnesh Sharma and Anushka Sharma (Clean Slate Productions) and Navdeep Singh, Sudip Sharma, Tarun Tejpal, Raj Kumar Gupta (Raapchik Films), Pritish, Rangita and Ishita Nandy (Pritish Nandy Productions), Amit Kumar and Asif Kapadia (Fission Features), Aaradhana Bhola, Vidyuth Bhandary Tony and Diya Singh (Fremantle Media), Amritpal Singh Bindra and Anand Tiwari (Still & Still Moving Pictures).
Amazon Original Series
In addition to new Indian Original Series, Prime members will also have access to the global Amazon Original Series from the US, including the Golden Globe, Emmy and BAFTA award-winning dark-comedy Transparent, the multi Golden Globe award-winning series Mozart in the Jungle, and one of the most-streamed Amazon Original Series ever by Amazon Prime members globally, The Man in the High Castle. Kids’ series will also be available including the animated art-adventure Creative Galaxy, Gortimer Gibbon’s Life on Normal Street, and the multi-Emmy award-winning animated series, Tumble Leaf, and more. Additional series like One Mississippi, Woody Allen’s Crisis in Six Scenes, David E. Kelley’s Goliath and Bryan Cranston and Graham Yosts' executively produced Sneaky Pete, will be added to the service early next year, along with the forthcoming docuseries American Playboy: the Hugh Hefner Story.
This line up would also include the new global adventure show, The Grand Tour, with Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May.
Premium content
Many new Bollywood and regional blockbusters will premiere exclusively on Amazon Prime Video within a few weeks after their theatrical release; many US TV shows will be available first on Amazon Prime Video day after US broadcast; and popular movies and TV shows will be available from top Indian and international studios including, Yash Raj Films, Dharma Productions, T-Series, Excel, Warner, Paramount, CBS, Everest, SVF, Green Gold, TV Asahi, Lionsgate, NDTV, CBeebies and more.
Prime Video will offer 2016’s top Indian and Hollywood blockbusters including Sultan, Kabali and Batman vs Superman; Dawn of Justice; top US TV shows like Mr. Robot, The Night Manager, Lethal Weapon, among other popular shows like The Good Wife and Two and a Half Men; top kids shows like Doraemon, Chhota Bheem and Oggy & the Cockroaches; top Indian shows like Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah, CID and Crime Patrol; and top stand-up shows from comedians like AIB.
In addition to English and Hindi, Prime Video will also offer regional movies in Tamil, Telugu, Bengali and Marathi, including Kaashmora, Theri, Killing Veerapan, 1 – Nenokkadine, Khawto, and Family Katta.
Amazon Prime Video Benefits
Amazon Prime Video delivers the same great video quality, reliability and features to Indian customers that Prime members enjoy in the US, UK, Germany, Austria and Japan, including subtitles and multi-language audio support, X-Ray to easily learn more about the video you’re watching, Continuous Play to effortlessly watch TV episodes back-to-back, parental controls to set viewing restrictions, and Amazon’s powerful search and recommendation algorithms that make discovering relevant titles quick and easy.
Seamless playback experience
Amazon’s proprietary streaming technology enables you to watch higher-quality video and enjoy smoother playback on your mobile network while minimizing data usage. Amazon also lets you control the maximum bitrate for videos you stream or download by selecting from four quality levels.
Convenient, on-demand access
With Amazon Prime Video, Prime members can watch TV shows and movies when and where they want, using the Prime Video app on Android phones and tablets, the Prime Video app for iPhones and iPads, at www.PrimeVideo.com; or on popular internet connected TVs and gaming consoles.
No additional cost to Prime membership
Amazon Prime Video is available to Prime members in India at no additional cost to their membership. To start a 30-day free trial of Prime, customers can visit www.PrimeVideo.com or download the Prime Video Android app. At the end of the free trial, customers can pay for Prime using the same payment methods available on Amazon.in today, including Credit Cards, Debit Cards, Gift Cards, Net Banking, and Cash on Delivery.
Amazon Prime already offers unlimited free One-day and Two-day delivery to over 100 cities on eligible items from India’s largest selection of products, 30 minutes early access for members on top deals and more benefits for an unparalleled shopping experience. Customers who are not already Prime members can learn more at www.amazon.in/prime.
Download and watch offline – for anytime, anywhere viewing
Prime members can download select movies and TV shows available on Prime Video for offline viewing on Android and iOS devices – that means watching on a plane, train, car, or anywhere – at no additional cost.
