Amazon has made some changes to video quality for Prime Video, effectively placing Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos behind a paywall.
This update was first spotted by 4KFilme on various smart TVs, including Sony and LG for example, where Prime Video content previously streamed in higher quality formats, but is now limited to HDR10 and Dolby Digital 5.1.
The Verge received confirmation from Amazon that access to Dolby Vision and Atmos features now requires a subscription to a new $2.99/month ad-free membership option. “Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos capabilities are only available on the ad-free option, on relevant titles,” said Amazon.
Amazon Prime costs $9.99/month or $99/year, with Prime Video included for free. But now you need to pay $2.99 CAD per month to get rid of ads, and to get access to Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos. That sucks, especially if you were enjoying Dolby Vision and Atmos on your support TV and home theatre set up.
So basically Prime works out to $11.25/month, if you’re subscribed to the annual fee and decide to pay $2.99 per month to get rid of ads.
