Amazon has changed the pricing structure for its Kids+ subscription service, leaving many families facing increased bills to watch child-friendly TV shows and content.
The firm sent an email to all Kids+ subscribers in the UK to tell them about the changes and put the new prices into effect almost immediately. All customers who use the service will be paying the new price moving forward and, despite Amazon saying the pricing was 'simplifying' the current system, it actually for many amounts to a price rise.
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Angry parents took to Twitter to express their views.
Previously, the service had two separate plans based on the number of children in a household.
A single child subscription cost £1.99 a month for Amazon Prime Members, while a subscription for up to four children on four separate profiles was £4.99 a month.
From this week Amazon has evened this out so all subscriptions cost £3.99 a month for Prime members, with four child profiles included for that price.
This goes up to £6.99 a month for non-Prime members. Amazon is also offering an annual pass priced at £38 for Prime members and £68 for non-Prime members. All new members can also get a 1-month free trial by clicking here.
While some parents with several children will be paying less for the service, single-child families are set to pay £2 more.
Some users have reported that when they try to cancel the service they are being offered a discount to sign up for an annual subscription, but Amazon has not confirmed this is the case.
What Is Amazon Kids+?
Previously known as Amazon Fire for Kids and Amazon Fire for Kids Unlimited, Amazon Kids+ is a child-friendly subscription service offering children access to age appropriate TV shows, film games, books and other content. It can be accessed on phones, tablets and some Amazon Firesticks and includes lots of popular family favourites including Paw Patrol, Lego Ninjago, Peppa Pig, Fireman Sam and lots more.
Because children can have their own profiles on their device with specific parental controls and age appropriate restrictions, the service acts as a safe 'walled garden' leaving kids less at risk of seeing inappropriate content.
Amazon Kids, which is available on smartphones, tablets and some Amazon Firestick TV devices lets parents open a profile for their child with robust parental controls, and then add content they purchased on Amazon – TV shows, films, etc’ – to that profile, thus creating a “walled garden” of content for the child although browser capability is available if parents wish it to be as an option, alongside screen time caps and a host of other extras.
