Amazon’s Crackdown on Free Shipping: Insights from a UVA Expert

Starting October 1st, Amazon Prime is making some changes. If you used to share your free shipping benefits with family members living at a different address, you’re going to have to adjust. The Prime Invitee Program is getting the boot. Instead, Amazon Family is stepping in to fill the gap. This means you can share your Prime perks with one other adult in your household and up to four child profiles. Additional grown-ups will need their own Prime Membership. Translation? If you want to keep your adult kids’ access to the family Amazon Prime account, they might need to consider moving back in! Otherwise, they’ll need to get their own accounts.

We chatted with Anthony Palomba, a media scholar and Darden School of Business professor at the University of Virginia, to get some insight into what this means for Amazon Prime members and the future of video streaming. Here’s what he had to say:

Q: What’s Amazon up to and how will it affect us?
A: Well, starting October 1st, only those living under the same roof can share shipping perks. Netflix has had success with this, and HBO Max is doing something similar. Many streaming services are moving in this direction, especially the big players looking to boost revenue.

Q: Why the change?
A: Amazon Prime is a hit with a wide range of users, thanks to its cost-effective subscription options and massive user base. Amazon wants to make sure they’re bringing in the most subscribers possible to keep the service thriving.