Amazon's Fire TV Streaming Project Is About Hooking in Prime Members
*By Amanda Weston*
Amazon's reported free video service may be designed to entice more people to sign up for Prime subscriptions, said PCWorld's Michael Simon.
"I think if they come out with an ad-supported version, which will probably show a smattering of popular shows to people who aren't Prime members yet, I think it could be super successful for both selling Fire TV devices, which would presumably be the way to get it like Roku, and also upgrading people to that full Prime membership, which I think is the ultimate goal here," Simon said Thursday in an interview on Cheddar.
The Information [reported Tuesday](https://www.theinformation.com/articles/amazon-plans-new-video-app-latest-step-into-tv-ad-market) Amazon is planning to launch a service called Free Dive for its 48 million Fire TV customers. Free Dive would be separate from the retail giant's Prime Video service and could be a direct competitor to the popular Roku Channel. Shares of Roku dropped 3 percent Wednesday after the news.
Simon said Amazon is likely trying to sell as many Fire TVs as it can to ultimately lure fans to its Prime program, which Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos revealed in a [letter to shareholders in April](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1018724/000119312518121161/d456916dex991.htm) has over 100 million subscribers. Even after the company raised the annual cost of membership from $99 to $119 in May, Simon called the service "lifetime commitment."
Prime members get access to Amazon's original content, but The Information suggested the company wants to license older TV shows that have already aired on other networks for Free Dive and make a play for the traditional TV ad market.
For Amazon to take over the industry from streaming giants like Netflix and Hulu, Simon said it might take a while.
"Netflix has a tremendous catalog and Amazon is, you know, they're slowly but surely getting there," Simon said. "If I had to peg it, I'd say it'll probably still take another three to five years before they're a realistic competitor to Netflix."
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/amazon-reportedly-set-to-launch-new-video-service).
Phyllis Newhouse, the first black woman to bring a company public via SPAC on the NYSE earlier this year, has launched her second SPAC, ShoulderUp Technology Acquisition.
Phyllis is a serial entrepreneur, retired military officer, and founder of the ShoulderUp movement, which educates and encourages women around the world to reach their greatest economic, political and cultural potential. Shawn Henry is part of the ShoulderUp team, bringing his expertise on cybersecurity to the new company. Both Phyllis and Shawn joined Cheddar to discuss this new venture and how it plans to tackle the issue of cybercrime.
Don Basile, CEO, Monsoon Blockchain & Founder of Bitcoin Latinum, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he explains why we're seeing major crypto investors look to purchase expensive pieces of art, and discusses what the NFT space could look like in the not-too-distant future.
Jack Constantine, chief digital officer and product inventor at Lush, joined Cheddar to talk about the cosmetic company's mass exodus from major social media platforms TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat, in the wake of recent reports that Instagram specifically had negative impacts on teen girls. He noted that with teenage girls being a large part of its consumer base and audience, Lush had a responsibility to market its company on outlets that prioritize mental wellbeing. "For us, we've always been a social brand, and it started to feel that social media was no longer offering what we felt we wanted to gain from it," he said. "And then obviously when you add that to the damage that it's causing, it just feels like a combination that we can't continue on with." The company also pulled out of social media platforms in 2019.
Jon Lowen, Co-Founder of Surfside, joined Wake Up With Cheddar's Baker Machado to discuss Uber's partnership with cannabis retailer Tokyo Smoke, as it's the first time a cannabis merchant has been listed on UberEats across all of its global markets.
Jack Dorsey resigned from his post as CEO of the social media company on Monday and will be replaced by chief technology officer Parag Agrawal. Mitch Rubin, portfolio manager at RiverPark Long/Short Opportunity Fund, joined Cheddar to break down the move and what it means for investors in both Twitter and Square, the payment company that Dorsey also helms. "For the long-term, I think this is very positive news for both companies," he said. Rubin also talked about growing competition in the social media space and why Twitter continues to lag behind other major players.
Jack Dorsey is officially out as Twitter's CEO. Dorsey said in a statement that the platform is ready to move away from its founders and now will be led by current CTO Parag Agrawal.
The ocean is an important topic when it comes to the climate. It plays a vital role in shaping our environment, with rising sea levels causing a 35% increase in natural disasters around the world, affecting 1.7 billion people. Dr. Sylvia Earle has been called perhaps the greatest advocate our oceans have ever had, with Time magazine dubbing her its first 'hero of the planet' and the Library of Congress naming her a living legend. She is also the founder of Mission Blue, an organization that inspires action to explore and protect the ocean. Dr. Earle joined Cheddar Climate for more on the importance of caring for the ocean and its impact on climate change.
