Amazon Prime Movie Rental Service Launched in India

Amazon Prime Video launched a movie rental service in India on Thursday, starting with the likes of The Batman, Scream, Moonfall, The Matrix Resurrections, and Spider-Man: No Way Home. At prices ranging from Rs. 99 to Rs. 499, Prime members can rent movies in high-definition (HD) or Ultra HD 4K.

Alongside, Prime Video promised to release more than 40 original series, and movies over the next two years.

The world's second-most populous nation with a population of nearly 1.4 billion, India is a valuable market for Amazon and its rivals Netflix and Disney's Disney+ Hotstar.

"We are super excited about the launch," Gaurav Gandhi, head of Amazon Prime Video India said at a function, adding that the service would widen customers' reach and choice. It enables them to pay per movie, instead of a flat monthly fee.

The move comes five years after the US tech giant launched its streaming service in India, and the company said it planned to more than double its investment in Prime Video over the next five years, but did not give figures.

The company unveiled plans for over a dozen original series in three Indian languages, some to be produced by top Bollywood directors such as Karan Johar and Zoya Akhtar.

Amazon has invested heavily in acquiring and producing local content in India, where, founder Jeff Bezos said in 2020, Prime Video was doing better than anywhere else in the world. Amazon does not break out user numbers by country.

It is also expected to take on heavyweights such as Reliance Industries, Sony Group, and Disney (which currently holds the rights) in the battle for exclusive digital broadcast rights to the hugely popular cricket tournament Indian Premier League (IPL).