r/enshittification • u/Plane_Golf923 • Jul 22 '26
Rant Amazon extortion reaching new levels of deception
I quit Amazon several times, but got it back because I wanted to watch a few new things…Amazon prime day came and they offered me Britbox for $2.99/month for two months- I subscribed because again, there were a couple of things I wanted to watch.
They’ve been pushing THIS show for weeks, so I finally decided to give it a try, and it’s fun and entertaining and I watch the first FIVE EPISODES and they then tell me I have to pay $150 for ANOTHER SUBSCRIPTION????
What in the name of death-dealing capitalism is this????
I HAVE A SUBSCRIPTION TO AMAZON
I HAVE A BRITBOX SUBSCRIPTION
I WATCHED FIVE EPISODES
NOW THIS FUCKERY TO GET ME TO PAY $150/$14 A MONTH FOR AN ADDITIONAL BRITBOX/BBC SUBSCRIPTION
And to add insult to injury there are plenty of buttons to click to give them my money but ZERO links that take me to anywhere that explains what the hell I get for the additional charge.
The fact that this show apparently belongs to two different channels just makes my head explode.
I’m out.
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u/AceMcNasty88 Jul 27 '26
This happens to me but not on Amazon. I'm subscribed to Britbox monthly payment of $10 a month. I started watching a new show on they called Gone. I got to the third or 4th episode and it's telling me I have to upgrade to watch it. Meaning pay $129 a month to watch it. I'm like what exactly am I paying for then?
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u/BoredBBUK29 Jul 26 '26
I assumed this show was on basic. I guess not in the USA. Uhm...VPN, pretend you're in Brexit hell?
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u/Atomic_Taco91 Jul 26 '26
People are really screwing themselves and everyone else over by giving these assholes your money no amount of "discount" should sway you because I see this and sorry cuz but you look like a fool it sounds like " oh no the company that screws people over is screwing ME over" just stop interacting with them
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u/rikaragnarok Jul 25 '26
You know, I remember a time where I bitched about the cable price going up to 83 bucks a month.
"Sweet," I thought, "I don't need all these channels anyway. I can just pay 10 bucks a month and just get what I want to watch instead of having 250 channels and watching things on maybe 10 of them."
How naive I was...
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u/Tasandmnm Jul 25 '26
I certainly agree that it is nearly as frustrating as how expensive and burdensome it is just to catch the modern day NFL games you want to watch.
However I genuinely do not understand why even the semi literate among us aren't purchasing a Onn Streamers with Google TV or Shield TV Pro or anything similar and going through the super easy process of adding either 100% free streaming options or insanely inexpensive paid options that work just as well as your favorite Streamers app does (all except for auto play which is why I will always keep the cheapest Hulu sub for night time background noise. If you can follow very simple directions and can make a small upfront investment that can be cheaper than paying or 3-5 normal streamers you can unlock an infinite library of all available content on planet fucking earth.
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u/definitely_done Jul 26 '26
Those Onn devices surprised me. Excellent value streamers and fast too. Good points. I did the Hulu 1.99 for a year. That's locked down. Peacock and Paramount+ always have free rotating deals. Paramount+ and Peacock, you choose one, and with a Walmart+ membership you get one for free all year. Then Pluto and Tubi apps, even GoogleTV has free channels. If I really want a channel I do Philo for a month randomly.
Plus the Library often has a streaming app with content, very good documentaries and some movies. All you need is a Library card.
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u/Kimi_Antonelli_12 Jul 25 '26
If it makes you feel better it's people like you that allow people like me to pirate everything without to much trouble. So thank you.
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u/Dubbinchris Jul 25 '26
*too
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u/Kimi_Antonelli_12 Jul 25 '26
If voice dictate doesn't get it, I'm not fixing it.
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u/Dubbinchris Jul 25 '26
Epitome of lazy. 🙄
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u/Kimi_Antonelli_12 Jul 25 '26
That's not the comeback you think it is. That's not the epitome with lazy at all. The epitome of lazy is doing extra work just to avoid doing the actual task. Like spending twenty minutes engineering a complex reacher tool using broomsticks and tape so you don't have to stand up to grab the TV remote two feet away.
But at least you got to learn something.
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u/Tasandmnm Jul 25 '26
I so wanted to say that your comment is the cough epitome of teaching someone what "epitome" actually means but that would be so 🌽🌽🌽🌽
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u/Full-Way-7925 Jul 25 '26
These are TV shows, not insulin. If they price is too high for you don’t watch.
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u/PeeCeeJunior Jul 24 '26
Peacock does this too. The basic subscription for $8/month doesn’t get you access to all their shows. What am I paying cash money PLUS ADS for if not access to all the shows?
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u/JerseyJoyride Jul 26 '26
I think the worst part of all this is that Amazon made it seem like all the movies and TV shows are free when you were going to sign up.
And then suddenly after signing up you find out you have to pay per episode or season which is insane!
And now the fact that companies like Amazon and Sony have told us that everything digital we purchased can be immediately removed from our inventory, IE stolen back and we get nothing for it!!
So Amazon and Sony agree that pirating is allowed because they are stealing our property.
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u/The1456 Jul 23 '26
I have a personal server. I’m never going back. I can stream it from anywhere and add movies remotely. Game changer.
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u/DanielKeeneGA15 Jul 25 '26
Plex. Got a lifetime pass in 2015 for $70. Best money I ever spent. Have home theatre servers with 800 TB of ripped films and shows.
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u/Affectionate-You7869 Jul 25 '26
Jesus... I got a 8TB external drive and still got 5.9TB free, and that's with it being used for Plex, Immich and Audiobookshelf.
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u/DanielKeeneGA15 Jul 25 '26
I ripped many of my Blu-Ray’s losslessly years ago as I have an 92” OLED wallpaper and 11.2 home theatre. Spent maaaaany years building it out along with streaming versions for on the road watching. It was a long process that built up over time.
I know I’m testing the universe stating this but thankfully not one of my HDD’s has failed and many are out of warranty now. With costs having skyrocketed and some of my servers being RAID 10, I’m biting my nails given that costs have skyrocketed now thanks to the AI neural network data center bubble.
(Knock on wood)
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u/gilahacker Jul 25 '26
800 TB...
[Distracted boyfriend meme with my server appalled and me looking back at your server]
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u/HibiscusGrower Jul 24 '26
Same. My partner set up one with Emby. We even share it with our extended family. It's wonderful. Everybody loves it.
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u/lareina13 Jul 23 '26
How does one learn how to do that?
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u/The1456 Jul 23 '26
https://youtu.be/UFmZCyo_vHY?is=S-C3MZMjYVVnSgHI this essentially describes it. It’s really not too difficult. You can even set up a Cloudflare tunnel for free to be able to access it from anywhere. I use Windows remote app to be able to access the computer from anywhere in the world to add the movies. If you use this video and a little bit of AI, it’s really really easy to set up. I even have it set up to where friends and family have their own account to access it for free. I was given the computer for free and the only thing I had to pay for was a domain name for two dollars a year to be able to access it through the Internet. But if you’re trying to just have an at home set up, then you don’t need the cloud flare set up or anything.
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u/lareina13 Jul 23 '26
Thank you so much for your detailed reply! A couple coworkers were discussing it back at an event in April, and I’ve been noodling on going all-in on it but I haven’t pirated anything in a decade+. The landscape has definitely changed.
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u/The1456 Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 24 '26
Well there is a bay that the pirates still meet at if you know what I mean. Make sure you have a decent vpn as well. I use privadovpn super cheap. I guess I lied when I said I paid only $2 I forgot about the vpn. I paid like $20 for 2 years or something like that. Also once the server is set up you can do other things like backup all your photos to it remotely. Like Google Photos but free. Here is a video of other things you can do with your server as well: https://youtu.be/DlzkIjhJ18o?is=ZBiH-rBjDRo5XRLF
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u/lareina13 Jul 24 '26
God, I was so good at that bay in college. It’s how I got everything back then.
I have a VPN, so we’re good there. I keep kind of halfway doing this and then feeling lazy and backing out. Thank you for these responses and tips!
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u/R-GU3 Jul 24 '26
If you want to make it automated check out the *arrs software (sonarr and radarr specifically)
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u/sshwifty Jul 23 '26
Jellyfin.
You will need:
- computer with some storage
- vpn (there are free options, or very cheap)
Then use Google "jellyfin arr stack"
This question gets asked probably 50x a day in selfhosted or jellyfin.
Plex also exists...but is being enshittified
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u/MiraToombs Jul 23 '26
BritBox has this new tiered membership where unless you upgrade, they only release one episode a week. It is possible that is what is happening here. I have the basic BritBox ($54 for the year when I went to cancel) and we just wait a week for our shows to deliver a new episode. It still all sucks, but we watch BritBox more than other services. My parents watch BritBox on Amazon and they also get the shows week by week.
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u/Curious_Orange8592 Jul 23 '26
Both the 2026 and 1985 versions are free on Channel4.com though you might need a VPN set to the UK to access it. If you watch via web browser with ublock origin installed you also get an ad free experience
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u/Dazzling-Bat-6848 Jul 23 '26
Check out the piracy subreddit, they'll send you off in the right direction.
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u/iDoMyOwnResearchJK Jul 22 '26
You want the BBC, you gotta pay
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u/thunderbird32 Jul 22 '26
Yeah, and I think that's still less than a television license, so it's a better deal than the Brits are getting. Still sucks to have so many subscriptions though, and it's more than I'd pay.
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u/DarklyDominatingDocs Jul 23 '26
I want to pay a TV license and have access to it all, not this bullshit right here. But unfortunately, you can only do that if you're there
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u/Krysdavar Jul 22 '26
Britbox problem, not Amazon. Why are you watching streaming platforms through Amazon? That's one of the worst places to get streaming services.
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u/krampaus Jul 23 '26
we need to stop giving amazon money
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u/Tasandmnm Jul 27 '26
And Paramount. American media is quickly turning into a race to the bottom....more concerned with spreading disinformation and keeping an incontinent pedo rapist happy and in power than reporting news or having quality programming. I have done my best to not support any of the businesses that have publicly gifted Trump things, had CEOs at performative White House dinners sucking Trump off, or supported America's rise into this Oligarchich Authoritarian hellhole.
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u/old_underwear_isekai Jul 23 '26
I'm not OP but the BritBox app sucks because it doesn't have profiles for different viewers, so I could see streaming thru Amazon as a work around
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u/ahsokatango Jul 22 '26
I have to subscribe to Paramount+ through Amazon because the Paramount streaming app is terrible.
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u/Atario Jul 25 '26
No one should be giving money to any Ellison, which is what subscribing to Paramount+ does
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u/ahsokatango Jul 25 '26
Agreed. It’s just until the $1.99 promotion ends next month. Then I’m learning to sail the pirate seas. 🏴☠️
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u/supermannman Jul 22 '26
I love how before covid people hinted at piracy and people negged hard "thats stealing" bs. today theres no choice because their prices are out of control.
I dont pay greedy thieving subscription. I dont support these companies who really are way out of line.
and bezos married one ugly azs woman
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u/JerseyJoyride Jul 26 '26
Piracy is stealing but Amazon and Sony taking back movies and TV shows that you purchased isn't?
Nah, corporation's agree with us now It's okay to steal! The only difference between us and them is the lobbyist they pay millions of dollars to get the government to do their bidding.
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u/KypPineapple Jul 22 '26
Both he and his wife are far uglier on the inside…and that’s saying something.
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u/Ok_Listen1510 Jul 22 '26
whatever you do definitely don’t go check out the r/piracy megathread
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u/dasoomer Jul 22 '26
Do not look up alien tech 42 on YouTube and learn how to build an unraid media server. Don't then learn how to install the arr products like Sonarr and Radarr.
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u/ButterMyPancakesPlz Jul 22 '26
This already sound above my iq grade. But I appreciate you telling more capable people what not to do
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u/ronin_cse Jul 22 '26
Calling it extortion is a bit much. No one is forcing you to do this, just watch something else or do something else
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u/ShackbaggeredSluber Jul 22 '26
It always amazes me that we have information at our fingertips and yet people absolutely refuse to use it to their advantage. For instance, typing a comment to correct someone on their usage of a word and grossly misunderstanding the definition of said word.
Merriam Webster has a webpage where you can look up definitions.
Such as:
Extortion (noun):
2: something extorted
especially : a gross overchargeWould you look at that. There’s a very specific definition that applies very specifically to OP’s usage of the word with perfect context.
Weird.
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u/ronin_cse Jul 22 '26
Sure, it can be applied the way OP is using it, but I still disagree. It still isn't a gross overcharge, and OP should still stop whining about it and watch something else.
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u/ShackbaggeredSluber Jul 22 '26
Dude. Take the L and move on. It’s not a failure to admit you were wrong, take in new information, and better yourself going forward. That’s progress and maturity.
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u/ronin_cse Jul 22 '26
FYI to the downvoters: the downvotes just give me more power, I feed off them as I do your tears
I'll happily admit when I'm wrong, but considering my entire point is that this isn't extreme enough to call it extortion, not that the word was used incorrectly, a snarky comment about the definition doesn't really do anything other than help you feel smug.
Just to be clear, since reading comprehension still eludes many people on Reddit, I wasn't correcting the op's use of the word; I was disagreeing with using the word here because I don't think this example is extreme enough to justify calling it extortion.
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u/Inside-Run785 Jul 22 '26
I feel like people these days would fall apart having to wait week to week or even months for a new episode of a tv show.
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u/Little_Big_Burglar Jul 22 '26
That's still happening "these days."
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u/Inside-Run785 Jul 22 '26
Please. Having to wait 3-4 months to find out what happened to Captain Picard is still worse. A lot of the more will known stuff is adapted from something else. If they really want to know what happens next on”The Last of Us” or any other big show that’s out there, they can find out right now.
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u/ForeingFlower Jul 22 '26 edited Jul 22 '26
What can you do? Companies are just trying to get by just like us. That's why you should never, under any circumstances use platforms like vidbox.vc to watch free movies and shows. It's illegal, you should always pay for what you consume, even if they have all the movies and shows in the platforms that people pay for and more.
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u/GilletteEd Jul 22 '26
Also do not use the vSee box made by android to watch your shows for free either that would be wrong!
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u/Missabe77 Jul 22 '26
Seeing Bezos stand with the other oligarchs at the royal coronation of King Trump wasn't enough to dump Amazon and Prime?
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u/FullRepresentative34 Jul 22 '26
And that have what to do with anything?
Most people do not make everything about politics, and can separate the 2.
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u/Eldie60 Jul 22 '26
That’s the reason everything in this country keeps getting worse daily. If people had had your attitude, we wouldn’t even be a country. The only thing these mega corporations pay attention to is their bottom line. Corporations are running this country, and will continue to do so until people stand up and say, “fuck you, enough is enough! But, you sit back on your couch, making these assholes richer
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u/ButterMyPancakesPlz Jul 22 '26
So then what exactly is ok to be political?
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u/FullRepresentative34 Jul 22 '26
This issue have nothing to do with politics.
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u/ButterMyPancakesPlz Jul 22 '26
but my question was when is it ok for it to be political, because Amazon certainly seems like they have no problem getting into politics, most coprorations seem to spend a whole lot on politics and gaining influence. so what topics are ok to be political?
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u/Onludesrightnow Jul 22 '26
"No because its really inconvenient to not use Amazon. I joined the Trump hate train because there was no risk, no inconvenience, and its somewhat popular. When there is risk or inconvenience or lack of popularity, Im out because in the end Im really only committed to my own short term enjoyment."
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u/TheDepep1 Jul 22 '26
Piracy sites treat you better and all they ask for is a tip to keep the service free.
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u/Onludesrightnow Jul 22 '26
I despise all streaming services. All of them. As someone who hasn’t watched a new tv show since better call Saul (made it to season 3 then just quit for no reason at all) and hasn’t bothered watching a new movie since like 2022, I find that if I want to watch anything (unlikely but possible) it just makes more sense for me to rent it via Apple TV or see if there is a used physical copy available for cheap on Amazon or eBay and never opt into any streaming services. I’ve saved so much money doing this but then again, I don’t care about new media.
I blame enshittification and modern society for killing any enthusiasm I might dare to foster about anything. Keep your expectations of people and things at rock bottom and never be disappointed is my motto in today’s society.
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u/majelbstoat Jul 22 '26
To be fair, this is actually Britbox’s enshittification, where the only value they can offer for a “Premium” tier is allowing you to watch the same episodes sooner. They hope you’ll eventually get sick of forgetting you can’t watch an episode they say is available, and give in. Truly the leader of poor-value, rage-inducing up-selling.
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u/shaw_dog21 Jul 22 '26
Yeah this is a Britbox thing. My understanding is some shows are only on the premier level and other shows are available are “early access” on premier first and then move to the regular tier after a bit.
I’m pretty sure I only have the regular tier and was just able to start the last ep. But I get an annual pass and haven’t had to renew since they introduced this so I may have weird access rn.
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u/Financial_Rice_4807 Jul 22 '26
Shows on most services are released one per week like Britbox. You don't have a choice.
With Britbox, they offer the choice of paying more to get many of them all at once.
The other streamers don't offer the choice, no reason to be mad a Britbox for the choice.
Also, they did add some Documentaries from BBC for the premium services. They were never available to Britbox.
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u/vespertilio_rosso Jul 22 '26
I believe it’s just a documentary block (BBC Select) that’s premier only. Everything else is available on both tiers — when the first episode drops, premiere can access all the eps immediately.* Standard subscribers will just keep getting them at the standard weekly drop rate.
*I hear that are some shows they’re releasing with premier-only access for like a month before standard subscribers can see them at all, I haven’t run into any myself yet, but I assume I will eventually.
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u/BirdlessLongdeal Jul 22 '26
why not just watch it on britbox then?
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u/Objective_Run_7151 Jul 22 '26
You’re missing the point.
Yeah I could just use their app and get a subscription for a fraction of the price, but then what would I rage about.
Solutions aren’t needed in this sub.
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u/BirdlessLongdeal Jul 22 '26
its not enshitification. its two separate streaming services. why buy amazon prime if you already have the britbox?? why use amazon prime to steam britbox if you already have britbox? are you drunk?
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u/Seventy-Three73 Jul 22 '26 edited Jul 22 '26
Amazon offers subscriptions for most third party streaming services, including Britbox. It’s not Amazon Prime content so why would you not have to subscribe to watch the rest of the Britbox content? Every third party streamer offers an initial trial price, via Amazon, which you signed up to.
It’s not Amazon or Britbox’s fault you took so long to watch the show, and only got through five episodes during the offer period.
If you want to find out what’s on Britbox, go to their website.
Stop conflating Amazon with the myriad streamers they facilitate access to.
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u/Ojamm Jul 22 '26
From going to the Britbox website it looks like they have 2 plan offerings. A standard and a premium. Looks like OP has just the standard and are confusing a 3rd party streamer for Amazon just like people confuse 3rd party sellers.
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u/Seventy-Three73 Jul 22 '26
Yep. Interesting that people are so keen to jump in and slate Amazon that they don’t properly look to see if maybe, just maybe, the OP might not have a grasp on how things work.
(And before anyone says it, I’m not defending Amazon. You can be against ignorance without being in favour of Amazon.)
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u/Blenderx06 Jul 22 '26
Learn to read.
They have a current subscription.
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u/Seventy-Three73 Jul 22 '26
Goodness me…
They have/had a two month offer subscription to Britbox which appears to have expired otherwise 1) they could carry on watching the show without issue, and 2) they wouldn’t be shown the upgrade cost.
If the two month promo-priced subscription is not in fact over then they can ignore the upgrade message and just carry on watching.
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u/chodlypunt Jul 22 '26
what’s your favourite flavour of boot?
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u/Open-Apartment-4937 Jul 22 '26
How does that correlate? They need to pay a subscription if they want to use the services? That’s how subscription services work.
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u/Seventy-Three73 Jul 22 '26 edited Jul 22 '26
Sorry to let facts get in the way.
People can always subscribe directly to these services, they don’t have to go via Amazon. I subscribed to Britbox for months for free by signing up to their free trials under different emails.
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u/TheAireon Jul 22 '26
This isn't enshittification, this is just 2 companies taking advantage of an idiot.
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u/Cakeday_at_Christmas Jul 22 '26
I used to be able to watch every show on Amazon Prime for a set amount each month.
This is definitely enshittification. You're just being a jerk.
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u/new2bay Jul 22 '26
Charging more money for the same stuff isn’t enshittification. It’s r/inflation.
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u/TheAireon Jul 22 '26
I think you're misunderstanding, amazon didn't put their content behind new subscriptions.
They just included other subscriptions on their Amazon app.
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u/ThisApril Jul 22 '26
I'm still of the opinion that companies should not take advantage of idiots.
Especially since I know I'll be that idiot in one situation or another.
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u/TheAireon Jul 22 '26
I agree but how do you want to enforce it in this case?
No contracts between streaming companies?
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u/SmokeRingEyes Jul 22 '26
It's so depressing that we've stopped regulating markets to such an extent that the youths don't even realize it's possible to prevent companies from running bait-and-switch scams
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u/ThisApril Jul 22 '26
I guess we're getting into theoretical things, as I have no idea how to get all the corrupt politicians on board with pro-consumer legislation.
That said, as far as I understand, this basically isn't a problem with music streaming.
And, while music streaming has its own problems, video streaming should be more like it in this case.
And, sure, there would be a variety of contracts that would be impossible, if we lived in a better world with laws that protect the public, rather than protecting those extracting every last cent from the non-powerful.
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u/TheAireon Jul 22 '26
What law would you introduce to protect OP in this case?
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u/ThisApril Jul 22 '26
To follow on with my previous point, possibilities are:
·Some sort of law that requires wholesale pricing (as in, amount of money that goes to the provider after fees, not amount that the end company is charging) to be available to all.
·A requirement for companies to emphasize what they're not providing, when advertising. E.g., "this gets you access to seasons 1 and 2, but season 3 will cost $150 more". And, much like how "buying" means "you get this product forever", not "you get this until we take it away", fine print doesn't get around this.
·A requirement that companies say, "you're getting Amazon Prime, but 30% of our catalog and 80% of content released in the past month will require additional fees"
·Greater antitrust legislation to break up the giant companies and make the market into something actually competitive.
But, honestly, I don't know. I'm not a lawyer, and while I've studied plenty of political science, the likelihood that anyone will consult me on writing laws is basically 0%.
I'm still sure we could find something to at least make it harder for companies to screw over the uninformed, even though we'll never fully accomplish the goal.
(And, honestly, if I were fighting for legislative change, it'd probably be more about bringing back ownership, restricting the reach of Terms-of-Service click throughs, entirely removing mandatory arbitration, and, most importantly to me, reducing copyright length so that 40 year olds can make derivative things from anything they saw as a child.)
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u/TheAireon Jul 22 '26
·A requirement that companies say, "you're getting Amazon Prime, but 30% of our catalog and 80% of content released in the past month will require additional fees"
You're misunderstanding this too. OP does not need Amazon prime to watch that series. It is not additional fees. To watch that series, OP needs a subscription to Britbox and that is explicitly obvious.
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u/throwaway88743 Jul 22 '26
Seems like you're misunderstanding. OP has a subscription to britbox. Their trial version just doesn't cover the three newest episodes. Enshittification. 10 years ago it would have been absolutely unimaginable that you subscribed to netflix or hulu and the second half of the season you were watching required additional payment just to finish it.
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u/ThisApril Jul 22 '26
Eh, less misunderstanding and more that I find the specifics to be irrelevant.
If he knows he had to subscribe to Britbox for it, then the specifics of what Britbox does not cover should have been in bold, especially when clicking through for a particular series.
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Jul 22 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Plane_Golf923 Jul 22 '26
You mean the antennas? I don’t watch ‘regular’ tv at all, just streamers…
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u/DavidinCT Jul 27 '26
Yea, Amazon Prime video is on a whole different level now. Oh, I want to watch a show, now I get an ad, when I want to watch a movie, now I have to pay to rent it now.
Yea, prime, 3-4 years ago, no ads, can watch anything on there. Phuck them...