Some Amazon Prime Day deals will become more costly if not monitored
Jul 12, 2023, 10:42 PM
The Amazon Prime deals have been fast and furious. Sure, people have been snatching up the usual robot vacuum and tablets, but they have also saved big on binge-watching.
Paramount Plus was available at half off. Same for AMC Plus. Or how about Starz for just 99 cents a month? Amazon’s two-day sale also offered discounts on Noggin, Cinemax, Britbox, Hallmark Movies, and All Black, among others.
These tempting, screaming, streaming deals were snagged by Prime Day shoppers. But CNET’s Bridget Carey warns there’s a catch.
“Don’t be caught off guard when suddenly it turns into a full-price subscription that may be auto-renewing.”
Yeah, that 50 percent discount, or 99-cent rate, lasts just two months, and then, BAM, you’re paying full price.
“We get kind of caught up in the, oh my goodness, a sale is happening right now. Let me click fast,” Carey said. “You have to take a moment. You have got to slow down. Look at what you’re actually buying.”
Studies have shown that it is easy to forget about a service you don’t watch anymore and miss the automatic payments to your credit or debit card.
Carey’s advice: before the costs of your streaming addiction add up to overspending, write them down.
“I’m very guilty of having a paper calendar even though I’m a tech reporter,” she said. “I write down, ‘Hey, HBO will renew on this day. Do you still want it?’ because it’s the only way to keep track of it all.”
