

Prime Video has recently found itself with a lot of angry customers. Customers are claiming that Amazon has been allegedly misleading its customers into thinking that movies they purchase are theirs to watch and are available whenever they want, but that is not the case. When a movie is bought, you are buying a license to watch it, so the license can be revoked at any time, and the movie that was “purchased” can disappear from the catalog at any time.
According to a report from The Hollywood Reporter, the class action was filed last Friday in Washington federal court. The suit alleges that the super corporation has not been clear when laying out the nature of an online purchase of a movie or TV show. The majority of customers allege they do not realize that buying a film means you have viewing access for a limited amount of time. It is essentially renting for an extended period of time. Once the streaming platform’s license to have the title expires, it is unavailable for the consumer as well, even though they “bought” it.
The information is available to customers, but it is only available in the fine print of the purchase page, which says that “you receive a license to the video and you agree to our terms.” Wright Noel, a lawyer part of the class action suit, wrote that the company “does not meet the standards set by the statute for a clear and conspicuous notice that the thing they are purchasing is a revocable license to access the digital good. The warning is buried at the very bottom of the screen, in font that is considerably smaller than the other text on the screen.”
Issues such as this lawsuit have brought a revival in purchasing physical media. Additionally, quality and access are pushing consumers toward physical media again. Streaming platforms such as Netflix are charging higher prices to stream in a better quality, like 4K, and platforms tend to prioritize newer titles. To revisit older movies, you most likely have to pay for a different streaming service that features the title.
The LA lawsuit against Amazon also alleges that the company “promotes false advertising,” among other things. The class action allegedly seeks unspecified damages, including disgorgement of profits and punitive damages for allegedly “intentionally malicious conduct.”
