Amazon is downplaying a Protocol report that said the company is looking to add 24/7 live programming to its Amazon Prime Video offering.
In an email sent to Next TV Wednesday afternoon, an Amazon rep said job postings for software engineers and product managers emphasizing live and linear programming experience only relate to existing teams focused on local broadcast offerings that are already within the Amazon Prime Video Channels portfolio. They are not part of any new strategic expansion of live and linear video programming, the company said.
Also read: Amazon Prime Video Set to Go Live and Linear
Citing an example, the company said ViacomCBS’s CBS All Access, one of the more popular SVOD services that’s disaggregated by Amazon and resold through the Prime Video Channels app, allows subscribers to stream their local CBS affiliate station.
Amazon also cited Canada’s Stack TV and Eurosport in the UK and Denmark as examples of Prime Video Channels content brands that also allow suers to access 24/7 station streams.
The Amazon rep said “hundreds” of live linear broadcast feeds are currently enabled via Prime Video Channels worldwide.
Amazon’s description of its activities differs widely from Protocol’s story, which describes Amazon Prime Video as being on the cusp of a major differentiation of the typical SVOD model, which is primarily focused on on-demand video programming.
Quoting an unidentified industry insider, Protocol said Amazon is “actively pursuing" deals to license live and linear programming.
“We are expanding not just the breadth of live content we offer, but the depth of the experience," one Amazon want ad said. "This is a transformative opportunity, the chance to be at the vanguard of a program that will revolutionize Prime Video, and the live streaming experience of customers everywhere.”
