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Prime Video’s upcoming ad-supported tier is beginning to take shape.
Disney’s Jeremy Helfand is headed to Amazon to lead Prime Video Advertising, the company has confirmed to Adweek. The executive first announced the news on LinkedIn today.
Helfand initially joined Hulu in 2018 as its vp and head of advertising platforms before rising to Disney, where he led advertising sales across the company’s interactive businesses including Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN.
The executive shuffle comes ahead of Amazon’s ad-supported tier on Prime Video, arriving in the U.S. on Jan. 29.
Unlike Disney and Netflix, which introduced ad-supported tiers a year ago, Prime Video’s will become the default subscription plan for all users. Those who wish to remain ad-free can pay an additional $2.99 per month.
The new service won’t affect live events like sports or content through the free AVOD service Amazon Freevee.
Additionally, the ad tier is expected to kick off with significant scale. Though Amazon does not reveal active Prime Video users, the Prime service (which includes Prime Video) has more than 200 million paying customers and costs $139 per year.
Round and round
Helfand’s hire is the latest round of musical chairs as the TV and streaming industry shifts towards an AVOD approach from SVOD.
In 2022, Netflix hired Peter Naylor and Jeremi Gorman from Snap to head its advertising division, before Gorman’s departure in October. Netflix veteran Amy Reinhard now serves as president of advertising.
Additionally, late last year, longtime Roku advertising executive Alison Levin suddenly departed the company, heading to NBCUniversal as president of advertising and partnerships.
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