Amazon reels in MGM



Amazon ended speculation over a move for US-headquartered MGM Studios, agreeing an $8.45 billion acquisition which brings the e-commerce giant access to a library of big-name content.

Its move will have repercussions for mobile operators, coming at a time when Verizon and AT&T are re-evaluating their respective media plays, made to fend off growing competition from OTT streaming services including Amazon Prime Video.

T-Mobile US currently offers Amazon Prime members unlimited video streaming without data charges and also bundles Netflix with some tariffs. AT&T adopted a similar strategy with HBO Max content.

But it remains to be seen which operators, if any, will have the chance to offer Amazon Prime Video as part of a wireless subscription.

Verizon has partnered to integrate its 5G mobile edge computing platform with Amazon edge nodes, and Dish Network plans to host its entire 5G network on Amazon Web Services.

Hosting content near the end users is important to all streaming services and Amazon has an advantage here with AWS for the Edge.

With MGM on board, Amazon will be able to serve premium content from almost anywhere, a combination which could attract operators seeking media partners.