Amazon is developing plans to add live and linear channels to Prime Video. The slate includes live news, music and sports in addition to scheduled movies and TV series.
The plans emerged in the US tech publication Protocol that discovered a series of job listings for posts covering the new channels.
Amazon already screens limited live sports shows. It has rights to the Premier League in the UK and the Champions League in Germany. There is also Amazon Prime Video Channels, with a mix of third party channels, available both as part of Amazon’s overall package, and for an additional fee.
In its job listing Amazon admits that despite the move towards on demand, there is still interest in linear: “Although video on demand is on the rise, the global viewing hours weighs in favor of live or scheduled TV.”
By adding its own channels, Amazon would make its own offer distinctive from rivals Netflix, Disney+ and Apple. Linear streaming services such as Pluto and Xumo already provide a new twist on linear channels, screening back to back episodes of a single show.
