Amazon Set to Increase Prime Membership Fee By 17% for US Customers

[^^BIGMac]

I may be wrong but when Prime started it was all about “Free 2 Day shipping”. That’s over. Some things arrive in two days but an awful lot are taking 5-7 days. You pick the reason.

Then Amazon added Movies, free library books and now some sort of NFL coverage. But the original reason to pay for Amazon Prime has been left in the rear view mirror.

So if you’re not interested in their movie platform, reading their limited library of books or watching Thursday Night Football once a week then the service is seriously devalued.

Unless you are buying 2-3 items a month even the free shipping isn’t gonna make up for the new $139 price tag.

I’m cancelling in March before my membership renews. It’s no longer an appealing service for me.

 

[Ethosik]

I am a bit fed up with Amazon lately. I know people want to be able to compete with Amazon, but I have really been irritated that 90% of the products I look for on Amazon are default to be sold by some random seller instead of Amazon. I really wish this would go back to the old days where I can get stuff from Amazon not have to search for 15 minutes for the Amazon seller.

 

[jlc1978]

I am a bit fed up with Amazon lately. I know people want to be able to compete with Amazon, but I have really been irritated that 90% of the products I look for on Amazon are default to be sold by some random seller instead of Amazon. I really wish this would go back to the old days where I can get stuff from Amazon not have to search for 15 minutes for the Amazon seller.

I agree, but I'm guessing it's to avoid being accused of using its power to push make it harder for other companies to sell unless they shipped under the "Sold by Amazon" label and pre-staged their products.

 

[MadeTheSwitch]

But I just refuse to firehouse away money into endless subs

Re: 1password. Not sure how much longer that will be.

You should definitely switch. There are password managers that don’t require a monthly subscription. It’s long, but I suggest checking out the 1password migrants thread on this very website. It’s very informative.

Sorry, but you don’t understand basic economics.

Anything the government touches, it becomes more expensive and less efficient than a truly free market.

Anyone with an ounce of common sense understands supply, demand, and the effect of price ceilings, government subsidies, and price floors and how they have an effect on the economy. The people who think a mostly Democratic government is best for prices and quantity is kidding themselves. Our current Democratic jokester in the the White House and our brilliant Democratic/big government run Congress and the current state of our economy is a great example of a poor understanding of economics.

Ever see the state of U.S student loans, healthcare, infrastructure, and the education system? Those are all government subsidized. All of those sectors cost the middle class endless amounts of money while the poor make out like bandits.

Not everything. Certain aspects of healthcare come to mind as does public transportation. How much do you think a bus or subway ride would be if not for subsidies?

ou want the government to tax people to death and then subsidize everything, which makes everything cost even more in the long-run

Again, not everything.

ealthcare. Government backed. Again, people who don’t work or work part-time get these Cadillac plans for $0-$20/month with $0 deductibles, while the middle-class is stuck paying $500+ a month for an individual plan on the same marketplace with an $9,000 annual deductible.

Because people like me with disabilities can’t afford it. Other people can. However the goal was to give a system that would work for everyone. But a lot of people seem to want to maintain the status quo and give power and wealth to insurance companies, rather than try some different approaches. It’s something that still needs addressed and will continue to be until some changes are made.

Government interference drives up prices.

The people on insulin would beg to differ. Thanks to government intervention (not interference) that’s now capped out at $35.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————-

But none of this has to do anything with Amazon. So let me share my thoughts on that. I think they could go longer without a price increase, but I think the real thing driving up cost for them is the entertainment side of things. It’s becoming increasingly expensive to produce television shows and their is FIERCE competition by all the streaming services to acquire shows which drives up prices. But yeah, transportation cost factor into that as well. In general, cost for most everything go up over time though. That’s just a fact of all economies, not just the United States. Bread used to be 5 cents a loaf. One parent could pay for a house, a car, and send the kids to college on one salary. Now people struggle to do that with even two. Things in general cost too much relearive to wages. And this Amazon increase is just one more thing.

 

[jlc1978]

But none of this has to do anything with Amazon. So let me share my thoughts on that. I think they could go longer without a price increase, but I think the real thing driving up cost for them is the entertainment side of things. It’s becoming increasingly expensive to produce television shows and their is FIERCE competition by all the streaming services to acquire shows which drives up prices.

One of the challenges with entertainment is if a show is a hit, costs go up as actors want more money; especially if they go from being relatively unknown to stars. Unless it keeps bringing new subscribers, or raise subscription rates, to cover rising costs, So the very thing that a company wants in a show makes it less attractive as well. One good thing for Amazon is if they own the shows at least if they get popular they can stream them at no cost to them, unlike shows owned by another company.

Of course, as you point out, the need to keep generating content, much of which won't take off, because shows simply get too old as well.

But yeah, transportation cost factor into that as well.

Those are a lot easier to control, though judging by some of the excess space in an Amazon box they aren't yet exceeding the cubic capacity of their fleet..

 

[SoldOnApple]

Bring Seinfeld back to Prime Video.

 

[Phil77354]

I may be wrong but when Prime started it was all about “Free 2 Day shipping”. That’s over. Some things arrive in two days but an awful lot are taking 5-7 days. . .

You're right about that, although I'm thinking that the 2 day shipping may return (or at least be more frequent) once we get past the pandemic and effects its had on supply chain and delivery services. We'll see.

Even without the 2 day delivery Prime does give free delivery, which is a savings, as well as the other benefits mentioned by others here. I watch stuff on Prime Video pretty often, and I also buy enough things on Amazon that the delivery savings are beneficial.

I also think that Prime gives better customer support if there are issues with products that are received with any problems. I can't point to any evidence of that, but I know that my own experience with Amazon has always been excellent and any problems I have had are always taken care of very promptly and fairly, even generously in many cases.

 

[Dark_Omen]

You should definitely switch. There are password managers that don’t require a monthly subscription. It’s long, but I suggest checking out the 1password migrants thread on this very website. It’s very informative.

Not everything. Certain aspects of healthcare come to mind as does public transportation. How much do you think a bus or subway ride would be if not for subsidies?

Again, not everything.

Because people like me with disabilities can’t afford it. Other people can. However the goal was to give a system that would work for everyone. But a lot of people seem to want to maintain the status quo and give power and wealth to insurance companies, rather than try some different approaches. It’s something that still needs addressed and will continue to be until some changes are made.

The people on insulin would beg to differ. Thanks to government intervention (not interference) that’s now capped out at $35.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————-

But none of this has to do anything with Amazon. So let me share my thoughts on that. I think they could go longer without a price increase, but I think the real thing driving up cost for them is the entertainment side of things. It’s becoming increasingly expensive to produce television shows and their is FIERCE competition by all the streaming services to acquire shows which drives up prices. But yeah, transportation cost factor into that as well. In general, cost for most everything go up over time though. That’s just a fact of all economies, not just the United States. Bread used to be 5 cents a loaf. One parent could pay for a house, a car, and send the kids to college on one salary. Now people struggle to do that with even two. Things in general cost too much relearive to wages. And this Amazon increase is just one more thing.

Please don’t vote in November.

 

[BaracksPhallusPalace]

to those that think increasing taxes in any way, for any reason, is a good idea... let me ask you two questions.

First, out of all the money the government has stolen from you to pay for supposed services, can you equate any of what you receive from the government as equal in value for what has been taken from you? I sure as hell can't... I live in CA and the roads are garbage, there's mounds of trash and drug addled transients everywhere that are being completely ignored, it's expensive to live anywhere here and public transportation is a joke.

Second, if the government can keep printing money and adding trillions to the deficit that will never be repaid, why do we need to pay taxes anyway?

 

[MadeTheSwitch]

Please don’t vote in November.

That’s a strange thing to tell someone in a free country. I have voted in virtually every election for decades of my entire adult life. I’m certainly not going to stop just because some random stranger on the internet wants me to. But hey, thanks for being unable to address any of the points I raised. ?

 

[MadeTheSwitch]

to those that think increasing taxes in any way, for any reason, is a good idea... let me ask you two questions.

First, out of all the money the government has stolen from you to pay for supposed services, can you equate any of what you receive from the government as equal in value for what has been taken from you? I sure as hell can't... I live in CA and the roads are garbage, there's mounds of trash and drug addled transients everywhere that are being completely ignored, it's expensive to live anywhere here and public transportation is a joke.

Second, if the government can keep printing money and adding trillions to the deficit that will never be repaid, why do we need to pay taxes anyway?

Yes I can. And I happen to live in the same state you do. I certainly couldn’t affird to maintain the vast network of freeways and insure that the hundreds of old outdated bridges were retrofitted to withstand earthquakes (which cost a fortune to do btw), could you?

As for expensive, that’s called supply and demand. When you have a nice area with nice weather that a mass number of people want to live, and there’s not much more vacant buildable land, yeah prices are going to go up. Shocker!

I do agree with you on public transportation being a joke, but that was a decision made way back in the 1950’s when people (and corporations) decided cars were the best form of transportation. And we have paid the price for those decisions ever since. Also agree with you on the homeless problem, but I have seen improvements on that over the last few years. But again, that’s a symptom of the high housing costs and supply/demand issues in the region. There’s really no man-made solution to that problem. As long as people want to live in a particular place, prices will go up.

 

[BaracksPhallusPalace]

Yes I can. And I happen to live in the same state you do. I certainly couldn’t affird to maintain the vast network of freeways and insure that the hundreds of old outdated bridges were retrofitted to withstand earthquakes (which cost a fortune to do btw), could you?

As for expensive, that’s called supply and demand. When you have a nice area with nice weather that a mass number of people want to live, and there’s not much more vacant buildable land, yeah prices are going to go up. Shocker!

I do agree with you on public transportation being a joke, but that was a decision made way back in the 1950’s when people (and corporations) decided cars were the best form of transportation. And we have paid the price for those decisions ever since. Also agree with you on the homeless problem, but I have seen improvements on that over the last few years. But again, that’s a symptom of the high housing costs and supply/demand issues in the region. There’s really no man-made solution to that problem. As long as people want to live in a particular place, prices will go up.

You are in denial if you believe that as an individual, that tens of thousands of dollars of your annual income is justified to pay for outdated & congested highways that are barely maintained, school districts that can barely get a 50% literacy rate, tent cities and feces covered streets, and paying the salaries of corrupt politicians & bureaucrats that live in mansions while their constituents live in squalor (e.g. Maxine Waters)

It's for these reasons that people are flocking out of this place for states with less taxes and better infrastructure. I don't blame them one bit. California is a prime example of what perpetually increasing taxes does for it's inhabitants... it doesn't make your quality of life better, it only benefits those that live off the extortion racket.

 

[MadeTheSwitch]

You are in denial if you believe that as an individual, that tens of thousands of dollars of your annual income is justified to pay for outdated & congested highways that are barely maintained, school districts that can barely get a 50% literacy rate, tent cities and feces covered streets, and paying the salaries of corrupt politicians & bureaucrats that live in mansions while their constituents live in squalor (e.g. Maxine Waters)

It's for these reasons that people are flocking out of this place for states with less taxes and better infrastructure. I don't blame them one bit. California is a prime example of what perpetually increasing taxes does for it's inhabitants... it doesn't make your quality of life better, it only benefits those that live off the extortion racket.

Lol....is the street you live on covered in feces? I sincerely doubt it. But thanks for overstating and exaggerating the problem and trying to be as sensational and outlandish as possible! ?

Barely maintained streets? Hardly. Again, it is quite expensive to maintain a road system as vast as ours in a sesmic prone area where many of the bridges take back to the 1950’s or even earlier. They are doing a great job retrofitting bridges, and building new ones including the beautiful massive 6th Street Viaduct in Los Angeles to replace a bridge from the 1930’s.

 

[rhett7660]

I literally only have Prime for fast and "free" delivery and I'm sure I'm not alone in that.

After have watched several of the shows... I am digging prime video. But for the most part that is exactly why I have it also. I will have to take a look at my spending and see if the free shipping will offset the amount of money I will put out upfront for Prime.

 

[BaracksPhallusPalace]

Lol....is the street you live on covered in feces? I sincerely doubt it. But thanks for overstating and exaggerating the problem and trying to be as sensational and outlandish as possible! ?

Barely maintained streets? Hardly. Again, it is quite expensive to maintain a road system as vast as ours in a sesmic prone area where many of the bridges take back to the 1950’s or even earlier. They are doing a great job retrofitting bridges, and building new ones including the beautiful massive 6th Street Viaduct in Los Angeles to replace a bridge from the 1930’s.

Have you visited San Francisco or downtown LA recently? there's trash, feces, vandalism & theft, and tents everywhere. There hasn't been a major earthquake here in a decade, how do you know how well of a job they've done retrofitting bridges and buildings? You completely ignored my other points.

We have 40 million taxpayers in this state, much more than any other state in the country, so why do we have so many infrastructure problems here? are we not being taxed enough? or is the answer more obvious that the money is squandered?

 

[MadeTheSwitch]

Have you visited San Francisco or downtown LA recently? there's trash, feces, vandalism & theft, and tents everywhere.

Of course. If you scroll back, you will see that I agree with you on the homeless problem. The problem is many of these people refuse to go to shelters. So what do you think should be done with them? Let’s hear your solutions rather than just your complaints. Although I seriously doubt you are driving the streets of both L.A. and San Francisco and instead just want to complain about neighborhoods you’d never visit anyway. My neighborhood is perfectly nice. I am sure yours is too.

There hasn't been a major earthquake here in a decade, how do you know how well of a job they've done retrofitting bridges and buildings?

By “good job” I was referring to the sheer number of bridges they have had to deal with and work on. Obviously we won’t know if those efforts are successful or not until big quakes hit. That’s kind of obvious.

Don’t know why you have now jumped to buildings as well, but that’s what you do...just expand your complaints. Someone as unhappy as you, should probably move rather than just constantly shaking your fist. Or put your money where your mouth is and run for office if you think you have better solutions. Complaining here on an Apple enthusiast website, will not bring about the change you seek.

You completely ignored my other points.

I have responded quite a bit. Probably too much. And more than anyone else has. You’ve already taken this thread off topic enough. No need to do so even more. I’m not here to entertain your every off-topic point.

 

[Dark_Omen]

That’s a strange thing to tell someone in a free country. I have voted in virtually every election for decades of my entire adult life. I’m certainly not going to stop just because some random stranger on the internet wants me to. But hey, thanks for being unable to address any of the points I raised. ?

Everyone else has already ripped your weak arguments apart. I don’t feel the need to waste my time with that. Congrats on being a reason for the disaster our federal government is right now.

 

[MadeTheSwitch]

Everyone else has already ripped your weak arguments apart. I don’t feel the need to waste my time with that. Congrats on being a reason for the disaster our federal government is right now.

Everyone else? There’s a grand total of TWO people disagreeing with me. You and someone else. Your notion of “everyone” is quite exaggerated. ?

And again, thanks for being unable to address any of the points I raised.

 

[MrMojo1]

So Amazon's profits grew but still increases its fees to $139 for Prime membership so normal Prime members are literally subsidizing other members.
Amazon is so cheap that it could not just pay the subsidized Prime membership with its profits instead?? F Amazon!

 

[jlc1978]

So Amazon's profits grew but still increases its fees to $139 for Prime membership so normal Prime members are literally subsidizing other members.
Amazon is so cheap that it could not just pay the subsidized Prime membership with its profits instead?? F Amazon!

Why should they? If enough people find Prime useful at $139, they will keep that price. If enough folks bail they'll rethink the strategy. It's simple economics.

 

[freediverx]

Why should they? If enough people find Prime useful at $139, they will keep that price. If enough folks bail they'll rethink the strategy. It's simple economics.

No, it's more like a company creating a virtual monopoly and then using their power to all but eliminate competition. Most companies can't survive today without at least offering their goods on Amazon as an alternative, and Amazon forbids them from offering lower prices elsewhere. Amazon is the polar opposite of a free market.

This would never be allowed if anti-trust regulators weren't asleep at the wheel.

 

[jlc1978]

No, it's more like a company creating a virtual monopoly and then using their power to all but eliminate competition. Most companies can't survive today without at least offering their goods on Amazon as an alternative,

That's different than Amazon setting a market price for Prime.
Other companies offer similar services for less.

and Amazon forbids them from offering lower prices elsewhere. Amazon is the polar opposite of a free market.

Amazon has plenty of competitors, who sometimes are cheaper. I've bought goods directly from retailers on Amazon, through their store, and paid less than the Amazon price. I found teh item on Amazon, looked for tehir website, and made the purchase. Saved 5%.

This would never be allowed if anti-trust regulators weren't asleep at the wheel.

If Amazon is offering lower prices for goods than would be available absent Amazon, then that's a win for the consumer.

I'm not saying Amazon is some force for good; just there are benefits for the consumer as well; low prices one of tehm.

 

[Splitrail]

With Amazon, I find prices average to good, but the free shipping for orders over $25 is a BIG plus to me.

 

[webkit]

So Amazon's profits grew but still increases its fees to $139 for Prime membership so normal Prime members are literally subsidizing other members.
Amazon is so cheap that it could not just pay the subsidized Prime membership with its profits instead?? F Amazon!

Given that Apple's profit not only grew but are record breaking, does that mean Apple shouldn't be raising prices?

"F Apple" for raising student plan prices for Apple Music on all those poor students last month, right?
"F Apple" for raising prices so much in markets like Japan, right?

Apple better not be "so cheap" and raise prices on anything else, right? Especially with their huge profits!

 

[webkit]

No, it's more like a company creating a virtual monopoly and then using their power to all but eliminate competition. Most companies can't survive today without at least offering their goods on Amazon as an alternative, and Amazon forbids them from offering lower prices elsewhere. Amazon is the polar opposite of a free market.

This would never be allowed if anti-trust regulators weren't asleep at the wheel.

Amazon has about 40% of online e-commerce market share in the U.S. (much less globally) but being "dominant" is not itself illegal. However, there have been antitrust investigations into Amazon. There is also pending legislation that would very likely impact the company. In what ways have regulators been "asleep at the wheel" in regard to Amazon?