While there still isn’t an online video service that can truly replace cable, the streaming alternatives are spending big bucks to beef up their selection of programs.
As this chart from Statista shows, Netflix and Amazon are expected to lead the charge. Netflix said late last year that it plans to spend a whopping $6 billion on content in 2017. Only ESPN is expected to spend more, at more than $7 billion, over that time.
Meanwhile, analysts at JPMorgan said last week that Amazon is set to spend $4.5 billion on video itself. Amazon has had success with original shows like “The Man in the High Castle” and “The Grand Tour,” and the company’s aggressive spending highlights its ambition to become as much of a destination for high-quality shows as Netflix and HBO.
And because everything Amazon does ties back to its main e-commerce business, the company’s video investment may even cause consumers to buy other stuff on its site.
by Jeff Dunn
