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Amazon Won't Sell Non-Prime Members Certain Popular Movies and Video Games (businessinsider.com)

Posted by msmash on from the that's-one-way-to-go-about-it dept.

An anonymous reader writes: If you're not an Amazon Prime subscriber, you will no longer be able to purchase certain popular game titles and movies, according to a report on game blog Videogamer. One of the benefits of Amazon's Prime program is that it gives members exclusive access to some items. This selection includes a rotating roster of popular video games, Blu-rays, and DVDs. Non-Prime members in the US can't buy titles such as Oscar-winning "Birdman" on Blu-ray or "GTA V" for PS4 from Amazon. This initiative, which has been going for quite some time, affects customers in the UK as well (though the selection is different). Non-Prime customers can still buy these titles from third-party sellers on Amazon's platform, but not from Amazon directly.

2 of 180 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Prime membership by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    On average, the items my family (i.e. my wife) shops for cost significantly less through Amazon than through a brick-and-mortar store.

    Incidentally, this isn't by chance... it's mostly because the people that make sure you get things through Amazon have the most horrible jobs in the US... http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/02/mac-mcclelland-free-online-shipping-warehouses-labor

    I'm happy to support my local stores whenever possible.

  2. Re:Prime membership by cdrudge · · Score: 4, Interesting

    And the flagship product of Prime, the free shipping is sort of a scam, too. You'll see many sellers on Amazon selling the same product, and surprise, surprise, the ones that are Prime eligible happen to cost more, and the increase is pretty much exactly the price of shipping.

    That's because Amazon charges the seller a fee to warehouse the item in their warehouse(s) and for fulfilling the order. You have the option to get "free" shipping in a day or two days with Prime, or anywhere from a few days days to weeks if you wait for the seller to ship it themselves.

    I personally am an impulsive buyer that wants things ASAP. I have a prime membership as I order enough stuff that it pays for itself vs paying for normal shipping and not having to wait 7-10 days for the free we'll-get-it-to-you-when-we-get-around-to-it-shipping to make it's way to me. I also like that if there's any issues with the shipping, returns, etc I just have to deal with Amazon's support that's always been great for me. I've never had to pay for return shipping for a problem that wasn't my doing, something I have with other online retailers.