Broadband ISPs Braced as Amazon Instant Confirms 4K UHD Video Streams

Internet providers will no doubt be keeping a careful watch of Amazon’s Prime Instant Video service after the company announced that members will soon be able to take advantage of the high-quality 4K (Ultra HD – 3840 x 2160 pixels) picture resolution of movies and TV shows on their service “at no additional cost” (rivals often charge a premium for it).

It’s understood that a number of popular Amazon Original Series and other shows, such as Alpha House, Transparent and Orphan Black, will be available in 4K. Apparently all of those and more will become available for streaming in Ultra HD on the service later this year and into next year, although it’s unclear if this is also applicable to the UK division.

Perhaps of more interest though is the fact that all Amazon customers will also have access to purchase a selection of movies in 4K format from Sony Pictures Entertainment, including After Earth, American Hustle, Captain Phillips, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Elysium, Godzilla, Hancock, Moneyball, The Mask of Zorro, The Monuments Men, The Amazing Spider-Man, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, The Da Vinci Code, The Patriot, Think Like a Man Too, This Is the End and many more.

Michael Paull, Vice President of Amazon Digital Video, said:

“We want to deliver the best entertainment experience, and offering Ultra HD movies and TV shows raises the bar on quality and innovation that customers have come to expect from Amazon. We’re also excited that Ultra HD is the latest benefit of the Amazon Prime membership, giving members instant access to great movies and TV shows in a premium picture resolution at no additional cost.”

At present most of the other Internet video services that support 4K content, such as Netflix, YouTube and Sony’s own platform, tend to require a stable broadband download speed of anything from 15 to 30Mbps (Megabits per second). Amazon doesn’t say precisely how fast their customers connections will need to be, although they do quote Netflix’s recommendation of 25Mbps (i.e. roughly the same as the UK Government’s starting definition for “superfast”).

It’s likely that the growth of 4K content will slowly help to entice consumers to adopt faster broadband connections, although at present the amount of TV’s available that can support the new standard is somewhat limited. But there are a few around that appear to ship with support for the necessary standards, although you’ll need to have at least £800+ lying around to get a good bit of kit, which is certain to fall. Credits to Thinkbroadband for spotting Amazon’s PR.