Skip to main content

Amazon secures expanded content licensing agreement with CBS

Amazon Instant VideoEarlier this month, we looked at how Amazon vexed  Netflix by garnering exclusive streaming rights to everyone’s favorite abbey. What we didn’t know was whether the coup was an aberration, or if Amazon would retain that momentum and make other strong moves.

Today, the company made an announcement that suggests the latter, as it secured an expanded content licensing agreement with CBS, adding to its slate of offerings from the network. America’s Next Top Model, Everybody Loves Raymond, Undercover Boss, and the United States of Tara are among the notable additions, and Amazon Prime members will have access to the new content at no additional charge.

This recent announcement comes on the heels of another deal with CBS, which made Amazon Instant the exclusive online subscription home for an upcoming Spielberg-produced CBS Series. The show, entitled Under the Dome, is an adaptation of its namesake, a Stephen King novel.

What do you think? Is Amazon making a compelling enough case to seduce subscribers away from Netflix and other services? We don’t think they’ve done so purely based on their streaming offerings, but bear in mind that if you’re a frequent Amazon user, Prime confers other advantages, such as free two-day shipping, and free ebook borrowing (one for each day of the month).

Editors' Recommendations

Adam Poltrack
Adam is an A/V News Writer for Digital Trends, and is responsible for bringing you the latest advances in A/V…
How to add new a profile to Amazon Fire TV
The Continue Watching row on the Amazon Fire TV home screen.

Amazon Fire TV devices, such as the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max, are among the best streaming devices you can buy. They offer a wide range of entertainment options such as the ability to watch your favorite TV shows and movies, play video games, and use apps. To cater to everyone's preferences in your household, the Fire TV comes with a profiles feature.

This feature enables you to personalize your Fire TV experience for each user on the device. With profiles, each user has the ability to add content to their watchlist, keep track of their watch progress and history, view unique recommendations, and more.

Read more
Amazon Prime Video makes Dolby Vision, Atmos a paid upgrade
The Amazon Prime Video app icon on Roku.

I have bad news if you're an Amazon Prime Video subscriber who hasn't opted for the company's new ad-free tier. Not only are you starting to see ads before you get to binge the latest season of Reacher, but you also won't be getting the show streamed in Dolby's most advanced formats -- Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos.

First reported by German website 4KFilme, then corroborated by Forbes in the U.K., it seems that Amazon has removed Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos from its base streaming tier (which became ad-supported on January 29), making the formats exclusive to those who opt-in to the ad-free premium subscription, which costs an additional $3 per month.

Read more
What is Amazon Music: everything you need to know
Amazon Music

It's a jungle of music streaming platforms out there, so it stands to reason that Amazon would have one among its massive kingdom of services. And while Amazon Music might not be top of mind among the Spotifys and Apple Musics of the world, you might be surprised by its 100-million-song library, high-resolution and spatial audio offerings, podcast library, Alexa voice control, and a pretty amiable user interface that makes finding music pretty easy.

Amazon Music's subscriptions range from free to its premium Music Unlimited tier, which can be added for $10 per month on top of a subscription to Amazon Prime. But they all come with some quirks and features. We're going to break them all down for you to help you choose which, if any, Amazon Music plan is right for you.

Read more