Amazon Prime Video Creates Individual User Profiles

It is prudent to assume that Amazon always had individual user profiles, the better to sell more stuff to said individuals and everyone around them whose data could be scarfed.

The difference now is that Amazon is going public with this under the customary guise of it being to the user's advantage. As usual, if there is no cost, you are the product. JL

Julia Alexander reports in The Verge:

Similar to personalized profiles on other streaming services, Amazon’s user profiles will tailor to each individual’s interests. That means each profile will include separate recommendations, progress on seasons being watched, and a watchlist based on profile activity. Each account will allow for up to six user profiles. One profile will default as the primary account. Kids accounts will restrict what type of content is shown. Customers can disable the feature from the “manage your profiles” page.

Amazon Prime Video is rolling out user profiles for family members and friends who share Prime accounts, the company announced today.

Each account will allow for up to six user profiles. One profile will default as the primary account, with five additional profiles allowed. These can be regular accounts or kids accounts. The kids account will restrict what type of content is shown, similar to how other children’s accounts on streaming services like Netflix and HBO Max work. Amazon did not note how many profiles can stream at once, but The Verge has reached out for clarification.

Profiles are linked through Amazon’s wallet sharing tool. The feature allows customers to share their payment methods with another Amazon account that has set up a household. (Here’s more info on how to do that.) Amazon Prime Video will automatically create linked accounts from the default profile to others that exist in the household.

Similar to personalized profiles on other streaming services, Amazon’s user profiles will tailor to each individual’s interests. That means each profile will include separate recommendations, progress on seasons being watched, and a watchlist based on profile activity, according to Amazon. Unlike Netflix and Disney Plus, it doesn’t appear that Prime Video customers will be able to customize the look of their profile icons with images from shows and movies.

This is important to note: if you don’t want to share profiles, customers can disable the feature from the “manage your profiles” page. Once profile sharing is turned off, however, customers will not be able to turn the feature back on. So be sure about disabling it before you do so.

Customers will be able to create and manage profiles with the Android and iOS versions of the Prime Video app, via the web, on 10th-generation or higher Fire tablets, through the Prime Video app for Fire TV, and “select living room devices such as the PlayStation 4,” at launch, according to Amazon. The feature is rolling out globally but will do so in phases, so not all customers will see the user profile options immediately.