Amazon Prime Video’s Upfronts Surpass Internal Expectations, According to BofA

Amazon’s Prime Video streaming service has successfully surpassed its goal of securing $1.8 billion in upfront advertising commitments for 2025, according to a recent report. This achievement not only exceeded the company’s internal expectations but also represents a significant advancement for its advertising business, as noted by analysts from Bank of America.

In just nine months of serving ads, Prime Video has demonstrated strong returns on investment for advertisers, according to the analysts. They emphasized the platform’s substantial ad-supported user base of approximately 115 million viewers in the U.S., an expanding library of content—including a $1.9 billion annual deal for NBA games—and robust data integration from Amazon’s retail operations that enhances measurement capabilities.

While Amazon’s upfront advertising commitments are noteworthy, they still fall behind industry competitors like Disney and NBCUniversal, which generated $9 billion and $7 billion in upfront advertising, respectively, in 2022. Additionally, YouTube, which has made considerable gains in TV viewership, is projected to bring in around $7 billion in upfront commitments for 2024.

Bank of America sees considerable growth potential for Amazon’s advertising business, estimating that Prime Video could generate between $3.5 billion and $4 billion in ad revenue for 2025, representing 5-6% of Amazon’s overall ad revenue forecast for the year. Previous estimates suggested that Prime Video might reach $4.6 billion in ad sales by the same year.

Furthermore, the analysts believe that Amazon’s ongoing investment in live sports, including a $1 billion yearly deal for Thursday Night Football, will help boost engagement and increase advertising revenue. The bank maintains a positive outlook on the growth prospects of Prime Video’s advertising business, retaining a Buy rating with a price target of $210 for Amazon shares, stating that the company is on track to build an effective streaming advertising platform.