Amazon.com Inc. is cracking down on shared Prime accounts.
The company says it’s ending a little-known however long-standing function of its Prime membership that allowed subscribers to increase free transport advantages to family and friends outdoors their houses.
The transfer, introduced this week, will shutter the corporate’s “Invitee Program” on Oct. 1, redirecting members to a stricter household-sharing mannequin referred to as Amazon Household.
What precisely are they ending?
For years, the Invitee Program quietly let Prime customers designate one outdoors particular person, usually a relative, roommate or shut good friend, who may benefit from the free transport perk with out paying for a separate subscription.
Amazon stopped accepting new invitees in 2015 however allowed current ones to stay grandfathered in. Beginning subsequent month, that door closes for good.
Affected invitees might be notified by Sept. 5 and supplied a reduced annual subscription of $14.99 for one yr, earlier than transitioning to Amazon’s normal charges of $14.99 per thirty days or $139 yearly, based on firm statements and customer notices.
As an alternative, Amazon is steering prospects towards its Household program, which allows sharing with one grownup, as much as 4 youngsters, and 4 little one profiles residing below the identical roof. Not like Invitee, the Household program is explicitly tied to a single family.
The change comes as Amazon faces slowing Prime progress within the U.S., regardless of record-breaking world engagement round this yr’s Prime Day gross sales occasion.
Wall Avenue is loving it
Analysts say the clampdown mirrors steps taken by Netflix and different streaming platforms to curb password sharing and enhance subscription income.
“Amazon is clearly signaling that it needs each person to be a paying buyer,” Dan Ives, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, wrote in a be aware to traders.
The shift mirrors strikes by different subscription platforms to restrict account sharing and extract extra income from customers. Netflix, whose 2023 crackdown on password sharing initially drew buyer outrage, in the end reported blockbuster progress.
In the final quarter of 2024, Netflix added 19 million subscribers, bringing its world paying membership to roughly 41 million larger than the yr prior. The corporate reported $10.5 billion in income for Q1 2025, up 12.5% yr over yr, and projected gross sales may climb to $11 billion by Q2.
Analysts say Netflix’s experience means that, regardless of early frustration, Amazon may benefit from related subscriber features if even a fraction of Invitee customers convert to full-price memberships.
Translation? Extra paying customers means more cash for the underside line, which suggests more cash for shareholders.
Clients are usually not
The choice has drawn pushback from some Prime members who say Invitee was their major motive for sustaining a subscription.
“This was the principle motive I retained my Prime subscription. Now I assume I’m free to stop,” one user wrote on Reddit. Others complained that the change erodes the worth of Prime, which already noticed a value hike in 2022.
Amazon, which counts greater than 200 million world Prime members, has been steadily layering new perks onto the $139-per-year service, from streaming video to grocery reductions, to defend in opposition to subscriber churn. However the free transport assure stays this system’s cornerstone, and any adjustment to how that profit is shared is closely watched.
Business observers be aware that tightening entry to Prime transport aligns Amazon extra intently with rivals in each retail and streaming. Costco and Sam’s Membership, as an example, limit their memberships to primary cardholders and household add-ons, whereas Netflix’s crackdown on password sharing has already produced a spike in new accounts.
For Amazon, the wager is that former Invitee customers will settle for the discounted provide and transition into full members. But when frustration amongst long-time prospects builds, the change may backfire, proper as U.S. Prime signups seem like plateauing.
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