Amazon Prime Monthly Cost Up By 20 Percent

• Amazon prime monthly membership cost increased
• Users who pay annually will remain unaffected
• Student's monthly fee for new sign-ups also affected

Amazon will raise Amazon Prime monthly subscription fee by approximately 18%. Premium membership will now cost $12.99, instead of $10.99, which was monthly fee until today. Furthermore, discounts for students will also be increased on a monthly basis. The new cost will now be $6.49, instead of $5.49. However, people who pay annually for their membership will not see these changes. Their fee will remain $99 per year.

The option for monthly subscription was introduced almost two years ago. It was a more convenient way to gain all the benefits such as fast shipping which Prime offered. Statistics have shown that those members who are prime spend much more time on Amazon than others. Speaking of history, the last jump in the increase of this service happened in 2014. At that time the yearly subscription went up from $70 to $99.

Amazon is certain that they prefer upfront payout. This means that, by raising the prices of monthly subscriptions, people will opt more for yearly ones. This locks the users up for a 12-month contract and it is certainly now a much more profitable option. On the other hand, people who need the flexibility that month-to-month payment will not be content with this decision.

Some of the most important Amazon prime offers include free eBooks, Whole Foods deals, and even free shipping. Although Amazon recently announced lower prices for popular Nintendo Switch games, this was certainly an unpleasant piece of news from them.

This step taken by Amazon is certainly a bold one. They are now more likely to gain more annual subscriptions and expand their business in a long run. What do you think? Is this type of strategy that Amazon applies a good one? Will people who pay monthly fees quit Amazon Prime?