Loading screens are nothing new, and many video games over the years have added visuals and tips to make them more interesting. Amazon is now trying something different with its Freevee streaming service — advertisements on loading screens.

Freevee, previously known as IMDb TV, is Amazon’s free streaming service for movies and TV shows. The service already shows advertisement breaks in the middle of content, but now Amazon is also testing advertisements that appear when the app is first opened. The company has only opened it up to a small number of advertisers, but it’s expected to roll out more globally later this year.

The “Welcome Screen” advertisements, as Amazon calls them, are only being tested on the Freevee app on Fire TV. There’s no indication right now that Amazon plans to extend them to Prime Video, or other applications on Fire TV. Dell, Lincoln, and Smartwater are already testing the new ad format, and you’ll probably see ads from other companies in the near future.

Amazon isn’t the only one experimenting with ads in streaming services. Disney+ will launch its ad-supported plan on December 8, alongside an updated ‘Disney Bundle’ that also contains Hulu with ads. Netflix is also preparing a cheaper plan with advertisements, as the service continues to lose subscribers. Amazon Freevee is one of many streaming services that is completely free with ads, alongside options like Pluto TV and The Roku Channel.

Via: AFTVNews
Source: Amazon Ads