Judge Rules Amazon Prime Misled Customers; Prime Video Expands Sports Coverage

Lead A U.S. judge found Amazon Prime violated consumer-protection law by gathering billing details before disclosing service terms, and Prime Video unveiled new live sports rights and analytic features on September 18.

Nut Graf The legal setback and simultaneous programming investments highlight Amazon Prime’s dual challenge of restoring consumer trust while bolstering its Prime Video offering to drive subscriber engagement.

FTC Ruling on Prime Sign-Ups

  • U.S. District Judge John Chun determined Amazon collected Prime subscribers’ payment information before fully revealing membership terms, granting the Federal Trade Commission a partial victory in its consumer-protection suit.
  • The FTC alleges Amazon obscured cancellation processes and enrolled millions without explicit consent, contravening the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act.
  • The ruling also permits the FTC to hold two Amazon executives personally liable for any proven violations and bars Amazon from claiming the law doesn’t apply to Prime enrollments.

Prime Video Secures Major Sports Rights

  • Amazon agreed to air four hours of exclusive live coverage of the U.S. Masters golf tournament starting next season, carving out midday broadcast windows on the first two days of the event.
  • The deal, arranged directly with Augusta National, enhances Amazon’s sports portfolio alongside NFL’s Thursday Night Football and NBA/WNBA rights, as the streamer aims for a future exclusive Super Bowl broadcast.

Prime Vision Introduces Advanced Football Analytics

  • For this season’s Thursday Night Football, Prime Video launched “Pocket Health,” an AI-driven tool that assesses offensive line performance in real time, pinpointing weak spots and responsible players before and after each snap.
  • By combining microchip tracking data with machine-learning models, Prime Vision enriches broadcasts with all-22 camera angles and predictive defensive alerts, giving fans unprecedented insight into in-game strategy.

Amazon’s legal and content developments on September 18 signal a pivotal moment for Prime: navigating regulatory scrutiny even as it aggressively expands premium video offerings to retain and attract subscribers.