Amazon Brings Instant Video Service to Japan

TOKYO: Amazon has started to offer its online video distribution service in Japan, allowing customers to purchase or rent films and TV shows from a selection of more than 26,000 titles.

Shochiku Co. and Toho Co. as well as major broadcasters NHK, TBS and Fuji TV are among the content producers for Amazon Instant Video in Japan. The service offers video downloads for around 100 yen ($1) for rental and 1,000 yen ($10) for purchase.

Hulu and Apple are both currently operating platforms in the region, adding to the competition that also includes local operators such as GyaO Corp, Tsutaya TV and NotTV. The Japanese cable network JCOM also offers a VOD service that allows for content to be downloaded on multiple devices. With Amazon Instant Video, titles can be streamed to two devices, but only downloaded to one. One of the devices linked with the service is Amazon's own Kindle tablet. The new Kindle HDX is about to become available in Japan; it will be offering a 2,000 yen ($20) credit for Instant Video as a tie-in promo.