Jassy: Amazon's Prime Video Streaming Service Is Now Profitable, With Revenue in the Tens of Billions
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said on the company's quarterly earnings call that Prime Video's revenue run rate is in the tens of billions of dollars and that the service is profitable. Amazon's movie studio has also taken in more than $1.2 billion at the global box office this year.
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said on Thursday, October 29, during the U.S. e-commerce and technology company's quarterly earnings call, that its streaming service Prime Video has become a significant business. According to Jassy, the service has a revenue run rate in the tens of billions of dollars and is profitable in its own right. The statement comes four years after Amazon bought the film studio MGM for $8.5 billion, and suggests the entertainment push has become lucrative.
Jassy had already told investors in May that Prime Video was profitable, but the tens-of-billions revenue figure is a new detail.
Films and series
Amazon said its movie studio, Amazon MGM Studios, has brought in more than $1.2 billion in global box office sales this year, helped by releases such as Project Hail Mary and Verity. According to The Numbers, Project Hail Mary grossed an estimated $684 million worldwide. The film stars Ryan Gosling, is based on Andy Weir's novel, opened in theaters in March and, according to entertainment reports, became the studio's highest-grossing release. This year also brought at least one notable flop: Melania.
Jassy also named Carrie, The Summer I Turned Pretty, The Boys, Off Campus, Fallout and Reacher among the successful TV shows. According to the company, season 4 of Reacher drew 66 million viewers globally in its first 28 days. Season 5 is currently being filmed, and a sixth season has already been ordered.
Sports
Live sports are another significant driver. Prime Video broadcasts NASCAR racing, the Masters golf tournament and UEFA Champions League soccer, but Thursday Night Football, its package of NFL American football games, appears to be the biggest success this year. Based on Nielsen figures shared by Amazon, the first six games of the season have averaged 17.7 million viewers, up 16% from last year. Nielsen also said the second season of NBA games on Prime, the U.S. basketball league's broadcasts, attracted over 2 million viewers.
