Amazon will increase the price of its Prime monthly service by 12.5% – or £1 – to £8.99 from September, and German Amazon customers also received a price increase notification letter this morning, with the same €1 price increase. It’s the latest sign of rising delivery costs. The company says the annual Prime package will cost even more: 20 percent, or £16 to £95, and €69 to €89.90, although that’s still a discount on the monthly package.
Amazon said the fee increase, which will be implemented when membership contracts are renewed starting Sept. 15, is the first since 2014 and follows a series of improvements to its Prime service.
“We’ve increased the number of products available for fast unlimited Prime delivery, recently added ultra-fast fresh grocery delivery, and significantly expanded our high-quality digital entertainment, including TV, movies, music, games and books,” a spokesperson said.
They added that original Amazon content on Prime Video has tripled since 2018, and the service has also added regionally produced, localized content.
More than a third of UK over-16s, some 19 million people, are estimated to be individual members, up from 31% or 15 million in 2019, according to market research firm Mintel. prime membership is peaking among younger consumers, with nearly two-thirds (64%) of 16-34-year-olds now using the service.
Prime delivery is the most used service, but the video streaming service grew fastest during the pandemic, with 62% of members using it regularly in 2020, according to Mintel. By comparison, only 7% use Amazon Fresh Food Delivery.
The price increases come as online retailers and streaming services look for ways to offset inflation in delivery costs and the increasing difficulty of handling returns.
Internet online services are not alone in raising prices; in March, Netflix said it was increasing the cost of its basic and standard plans by £1 a month to £6.99 and £10.99 respectively, while the premium plan will increase by £2 to £15.99. Apple Music is also increasing the cost of its student plan by £1 to £5.99, while Disney+ s fee increases by £2 to £7.99 per month.
The price increases come despite evidence of waning interest in streaming services now that widespread restrictions have ended and families are looking to reduce costs and find other ways to entertain themselves.
Boohoo, the fast fashion group that owns online brands such as Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Oasis, Wallis and Burton, began charging shoppers a £1.99 return fee earlier this month, becoming the latest online retailer to start charging a similar fee. zara, Sports Direct and Next are now also charging return fees for online purchases, as the costs of cleaning, inspecting and repackaging items and delivery have soared.
