Amazon is making Prime Video more like Netflix (and every other streaming app)
Amazon is introducing a new Prime Video interface that will be familiar to anyone who has used Netflix - or, for that matter, any other modern streaming service. To make the Prime Video experience "less busy and overwhelming", the company moved the platform's main navigation bar to the left side of the screen and arranged the icons in a vertical column. From top to bottom, the six menus are Search, Home, Shop, Live TV, Free, and My Stuff.
Most menus include sub-categories to further simplify navigation. For example, the Home section has subcategories for Movies, TV Shows, and Sports. Other Netflix-inspired features include a top 10 list of popular content and poster-style thumbnails that expand to preview as you browse.
Amazon
However, the most useful change Amazon has introduced is a new set of icons that make it easier to tell if something is part of Prime Video. A blue tick means the TV show or movie you want to watch is included in your subscription. In contrast, a gold shopping bag means you have to buy or rent the contents to see it.
According to The Verge, Amazon spent 18 months working on the redesign. Ben Smith, vice president of product for Prime Video and Prime Studios, spearheaded the project. He notably worked on the redesign of Hulu in 2017. This effort saw the service try something drastically different only to return to a more familiar design a few years later.
Amazon
Amazon will start rolling out the new Prime Video experience starting this week. The redesign will first arrive on Android and compatible streaming devices - including Roku, Fire TV and Apple TV - before landing on iOS and the web later this year.
The new experience won't be rolling out to all devices on which Prime Video is available, and some of the most notable omissions include third-generation Apple TV and Sony's PlayStation 3. If any of these allow you to watch Prime Video, you won't lose access to the service as a result - you'll just have to do without the redesigned interface for now.
All products recommended by Engadget are selected by our editorial team, independent of our parent company. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you purchase something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Amazon is introducing a new Prime Video interface that will be familiar to anyone who has used Netflix - or, for that matter, any other modern streaming service. To make the Prime Video experience "less busy and overwhelming", the company moved the platform's main navigation bar to the left side of the screen and arranged the icons in a vertical column. From top to bottom, the six menus are Search, Home, Shop, Live TV, Free, and My Stuff.
Most menus include sub-categories to further simplify navigation. For example, the Home section has subcategories for Movies, TV Shows, and Sports. Other Netflix-inspired features include a top 10 list of popular content and poster-style thumbnails that expand to preview as you browse.
Amazon
However, the most useful change Amazon has introduced is a new set of icons that make it easier to tell if something is part of Prime Video. A blue tick means the TV show or movie you want to watch is included in your subscription. In contrast, a gold shopping bag means you have to buy or rent the contents to see it.
According to The Verge, Amazon spent 18 months working on the redesign. Ben Smith, vice president of product for Prime Video and Prime Studios, spearheaded the project. He notably worked on the redesign of Hulu in 2017. This effort saw the service try something drastically different only to return to a more familiar design a few years later.
Amazon
Amazon will start rolling out the new Prime Video experience starting this week. The redesign will first arrive on Android and compatible streaming devices - including Roku, Fire TV and Apple TV - before landing on iOS and the web later this year.
The new experience won't be rolling out to all devices on which Prime Video is available, and some of the most notable omissions include third-generation Apple TV and Sony's PlayStation 3. If any of these allow you to watch Prime Video, you won't lose access to the service as a result - you'll just have to do without the redesigned interface for now.
All products recommended by Engadget are selected by our editorial team, independent of our parent company. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you purchase something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
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