After much negotiations and a bidding war between streaming services and broadcasters, Amazon managed to ink a 3-year deal with former Top Gear co-hosts. Clarkson, Hammond, and May along with Producer Andy Wilman will debut their new “unscripted” show next year on Amazon Prime Video. The agreement covers global rights for this upcoming... (visit MotoringFile for the full article) More...
Well, I guess that's better than nothing. I have no idea how to connect with Amazon Prime, but I suspect it won't be free.
Hmm... A birthday gift from Amazon!! And if you subscribe to "Amazon prime" to get free shipping, you get free streaming... Looks like they are trying to expand their lineup of shows/movies, and become more like Netflix. We can only hope they have the budget and producers to make a good show!! Maybe a partial reboot is what they needed to freshen things....
It's $99 a year, or about $8.33 a month (similar to Hulu and Netflix). Many TVs these days are "smart" TVs and have built in streaming applications that connect via WiFi to your home network. If you bought a TV in the last 3 years or so you might have the Amazon app built into it, since smart TVs are the rule rather than the exception these days. If you don't have a newer TV, an Amazon Fire is cheap, plugs into one of the ports on the TV and lets you watch streaming content.
Amazon Prime is awesome, free two day shipping plus instant videos. We got many time over the 99.00 cost on the free shipping!
No, it will not. You need a subscription that works out to $8.25 a month, $99 per year. There are special rates for students and I forget who else. You can try it free for 30 days to see whether you want to pay for it. Keep in mind the subscription is for Amazon Prime membership which comes with other benefits. Then you can watch Amazon Instant Video with your computer/device or, if you want it on your TV, you'll likely need to buy a streaming device as well. They're not free but most of the good ones aren't expensive. By the way, the other major contender they were shopping the show to was Netflix and the same would apply if they'd been the highest bidder; subscription fee and, depending on your needs, streaming device required. Most of the content on Amazon Instant Video also requires you to pay per show or series but the "Prime" stuff is free. At least I think that's how they distinguish. Since they've announced this as an "Amazon Prime" show maybe it will be free to watch (after your subscription fee).
Either way, it's a hundred bucks! Not really worth the investment for most I'm guessing, which will likely (and quite sadly) include me.
^ I go through more in shipping during the course of a year than the $99 fee. Steaming is an added bonus. Prime has been a good deal for me.
Prime has been very good to me as well. Streaming, shipping, kindle, and the new Prime Pantry. The prices there are pretty darn low. Being the urban dweller with no car currently and no bodega's it great for essentials. Amazon has the budget. This is a company that doesn't worry about the quarterly numbers, they take the long term view. They are evil too. the lack of local bookstores where I would while away hours is disconcerting.
For those of us who cut the cable TV cord, these streaming services can be a helluva deal. Compare that $8.25 a month for Prime to your monthly cable TV bill. There are disadvantages, no question, but it works for me. And I buy a lot of stuff from Amazon so it's like getting their streaming service for free. Meanwhile, if you've already ponied up for either a smart TV or a streaming device and you're already paying your $8.25 / month for Amazon's streaming service, this is just an additional show you can watch. But if you're not a big Amazon customer and you're still among the vast majority who still pay for cable TV then yes, it's a ridiculous additional expense to watch just this one show. I wouldn't even consider it...but if I was a huge fan of the old Top Gear I might use this as the last excuse I need to cut the cord and switch to streaming...maybe.
So, I wonder what the show will be like. They haven't said. Car-related, clearly (?), but I wonder whether they will try to do something drastically different or just freshen up their established personas, etc. I also wonder whether there are things the BBC can/will legally go after them for, like if they try to reuse tried and true themes. I think the best news is Wilman is part of this deal.
The Prime subscription is worth it to me just for the shipping. The last three weeks in a hotel while getting chemo and radiation have made it a lifesaver. From the boredom perspective anyway. I've been watching more Prime shows than netflix or Hulu. It's kept me from pulling my hair out over the lack of a pause button. Hate commercials!
I haven't paid for TV in years, and Netflix is so-so for the money once you are through the first 100 or so things you care to watch. I don't buy much on Amazon, but with this as a perk, they may get me to pay for it, shipping discount bringing the cost down. They may even have a few other things worth watching. For Top Gear alone, I certainly would not pay that much.
Appointment based TV is so last century. Netflix and Hulu are all I watch, and sometimes (rarely) the over the air content I can pick up on my antenna. Actually, I watch Netflix for the most part, and The Girl™ watches Hulu. Using our Apple TV we also watch PBS streaming shows and a few other options. Formula 1 is of course watched through... other means. Though I would gladly pay a yearly fee to get a season streaming pass. My TV has an Amazon app built in, so I'll get Prime for Top Gear and the other content that's on there, though I honestly think it'll end up being used mostly for the shipping deals. So between Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon, my streaming services will run about $24 a month, on top of the monthly Internet bill (which is currently only $30 - Thanks WowWay!). Still cheaper on the whole than cable, and very few commercials (stoopid Hulu not letting me buy out the ads).
F1 was what kept me on the cable for a few more years than I wanted, but I found those "other means." Thing is, F1 is on such a decline, I don't make any effort to watch it any longer. If you can't find content online, it's probably not worth watching, or protected by the lawyer hordes of geriatric billionaires and investment groups. Leaves a bad taste, given it is supposed to be "entertainment" - plenty more of that to be found elsewhere.
but it's not really a streaming "subscription" you are paying for. I've been a Prime member for years as I get 2 or 3 Amazon deliveries a week for $99 bucks a year for 2-day ship? Does not require even a 6th grade education to know that is more than a good deal....I would buy cars from them if they sold them! The Prime streaming is just an added benefit, so in that way it is very different from Hulu or Netlix......unless you don't shop at Amazon, of course!
So they want me to pay extra and then I can see this c**p? I'd pay extra to make sure I never see it.