Kelly Day: Our Business Model Will Inform the Evolution of Streaming Services
As Vice President, International for Prime Video, Kelly Day leads Prime Video’s SVOD, TVOD, and Channels businesses outside the United States. She also oversees the content and marketing strategies in the various regions around the world with a focus on commissioning and business performance.
Day is among the first executives receiving a NATPE Honors Award at NATPE Global this year in the category The Shift Disturber which celebrates managers with bold ideas and leadership that drive transformative change. In this exclusive interview with Yako Molhov, Kelly Day talks about Prime Video’s strategy for growth in a global business encompassing 200 countries, the challenges of finding the right content for a particular audience in a particular region, and some of the hits and services that set Prime Video apart from its competitors.
Day is among the first executives receiving a NATPE Honors Award at NATPE Global this year in the category The Shift Disturber which celebrates managers with bold ideas and leadership that drive transformative change. In this exclusive interview with Yako Molhov, Kelly Day talks about Prime Video’s strategy for growth in a global business encompassing 200 countries, the challenges of finding the right content for a particular audience in a particular region, and some of the hits and services that set Prime Video apart from its competitors.
Kelly Day, Vice President, International for Prime Video
Kelly, streaming platforms are fiercely competing for global audiences. What is Prime Video’s competitive edge in international markets?
Prime Video is a differentiator among streaming services, providing a first-stop entertainment destination for our customers, offering the world’s largest selection of series, movies, documentaries and live sports in one app, be it entertainment produced by Amazon MGM Studios exclusively for Prime members, licensed movies and series, content from other services made accessible as an add-on subscription, the largest selection of blockbuster movies and series to rent or buy, or FAST live linear channels.
Prime Video is a truly global business, available in over 200 countries and territories, with a fully localized offering in a large number of countries – meaning customers can easily explore our streaming service, rent or buy store, add-on channel subscriptions and more, with their preferred local language and payment preferences.
2024 marked a significant milestone for Amazon MGM Studios, as we saw extraordinary success across both film and series. As we look to 2025, we remain committed to building on this momentum, pushing boundaries, and continuing to deliver exceptional content that resonates with audiences worldwide. Prime Video further established itself as a global, premier destination for sports fans worldwide. We have worked hard to deliver sports fans year-round programming by continuing to expand our offering, now with NFL, NBA, WNBA, NASCAR, UEFA Champions League, NWSL, and more up and running in 2025.
Away from the content itself, our Prime Video product and tech teams are committed to delivering the best streaming experience for customers and are leveraging AWS and gen AI to ensure we are industry leaders in playback and we’re making huge strides on personalization too. There’s so much more to come.
How does Prime Video adapt its content strategy to cater the specificities of international markets?
In order for customers to choose Prime Video we need to offer programming that is differentiated from elsewhere. We want our shows to have a distinct flavor and we’re building a recognizable personality for our programming in each country in which we offer a bespoke Prime Video service. On our Originals strategy, we’ve spent time cultivating a truly distinct Amazon MGM Studios commissioning vision, stemming directly from Jen Salke (Head of Amazon MGM Studios), which we bring to life globally through standout International Originals, like Spain’s Culpa trilogy or Germany’s Maxton Hall. These TV series and movies stand shoulder-to-should on Prime Video alongside huge US titles like The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power, Fallout, Citadel, and You’re Cordially Invited, which resonate with audiences all around the world.
Our strategy has always been to produce local movies and series that have an outsized impact with local audiences, however we’re increasingly seeing that our international Originals travel beyond boarders. In fact, our Spanish YA movie Culpa Tuya has just become our biggest ever international Original at launch ever with 90% of streams coming from viewers outside of Spain, which is a trend we’re seeing more each year. Great stories can come from anywhere and resonate everywhere, and the success we’re seeing across genres and regions encourages us to continue investing in locally produced stories for a local and global audience. The audience expects a certain high quality when it comes to our Original productions, and our in-country content teams build a totally localized slate with these Originals at its heart but supported by fantastic licensed content from third parties too.
What is the role of local partnerships with studios, production companies and telcos in expanding Prime Video’s footprint?
We are passionate about cultivating strong partnerships globally, especially with local production companies and creatives, who are crucial when it comes to bringing innovative projects and groundbreaking narratives to Prime Video. We simply couldn’t deliver on our commitment to produce high-impact storytelling and high-quality content that connects with our local and global audiences without these partners. Further, our partnerships with telcos and device partners helps us extend the reach of this great Prime Video content and take it to new audiences where they are already watching.
With so many global markets to explore, how do you decide which regions to prioritize for investment and growth?
Our growth primarily comes from our unique business model which we’ve built by taking a customer first approach. This has helped us design Prime Video as a service that is an entertainment destination for our customers, one which is distinct from other global streaming services. Our aim is to become customers’ first-stop entertainment destination, and to achieve that, we’re playing a different game.
As has been well reported, the future growth for global streaming services is from expansion into international locales, and at Prime Video we’re excited about the opportunity ahead of us to continue to grow subscribers at the rapid rate you have seen to date, both in countries we’re already operating in, and new countries across the world that we’re just starting to invest in local content and marketing. Prioritization is important as we need to ensure we’re using our resources effectively, so we really look at countries where we have opportunity to grow depending on a number of factors, including our current resourcing in the region, Amazon retail’s presence and whether Prime is available for customers, and of course the size and detail of content production opportunity. Not all things have to line up though. We’ve entered countries before Prime and helped build awareness for the service through the video offer before the retail launch, just as we’ve gone bigger in countries where Prime already exists. We’re continually evaluating these opportunities and are lucky enough to have really smart leaders around the world with deep local knowledge and expertise helping us to make these decisions.
Which emerging markets are you most excited about, and why?
We’re in a period of growth and are expanding into new countries and regions. In overseeing international, I’m across all of our businesses outside of the US, including well-established Prime Video countries like UK, Canada, Germany and Japan which continue to drive meaningful growth. We also see outsized growth opportunities in large countries, such as India and Brazil as well as in Europe, where Scandinavia, the Netherlands, and Benelux represent growth opportunities and Emerging LATAM including Argentina, Chile and Colombia. We’ve built and are continuing to build strong teams there – both in Prime Video, on the business strategy side, and Amazon MGM Studios for original content, all looking at how to grow the service for customers. We’re excited by the results we’re seeing but also know there’s a huge opportunity for growth ahead of us.
How do you identify the right stories and creators for Prime Video’s original content in international territories?
At Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios, we’re first and foremost focused on ensuring that the content is appealing to local customers in that particular country. That means working with the best local creatives to uncover stories and formats that carry a particular resonance for audiences in that country. We’re looking for both high-quality and more mainstream titles that have a reason why they would be made in Latin America, for example, as opposed to anywhere else in the world.
We’re looking for content that will drive conversations and have an impact on people so that they want to share their experience with their families and friends. LOL - our global comedy unscripted format where comedians are pitted against each other in a battle to make them laugh - is a perfect example of that, which started in Japan and has resulted in more than 20 local adaptations and become Prime Video’s most successful franchise and a bona fide cultural phenomenon everywhere it launches.
What are some of the Prime Video originals that have significantly impacted the international market?
We are very proud to have just announced that Spanish Original young adult movie Culpa Tuya has taken the world by storm, becoming the most-watched International Original on Prime Video ever at launch. The sequel from Mercedes Ron’s best-selling the Culpables book trilogy, Culpa Tuya, launched on Prime Video on December 27 in 240 countries and territories worldwide. At launch, Culpa Tuya ranked number 1 title on Prime Video in over 170 countries, including Spain, France, Italy, Germany, Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Chile and Canada, Top 3 in the U.S. and U.K., and Top 10 in over 220 countries. It has now become the most-watched International Original movie or series on Prime Video at launch globally, with 90% of streams coming from viewers outside of Spain.
In 2024, a number of Prime Video International Originals debuted to record-breaking international success, setting a new bar for viewership of international programming. Seven different countries feature in the Top 10 list of most-watched non-English language International Originals which launched in 2024, reflecting the diverse viewing habits of Prime Video customers.
With so much content available nowadays and with consumers getting lost in the vast ocean of shows and series, the role of improving the user experience has become crucial. What is Prime Video’s strategy in this respect?
We are constantly innovating to deliver the best viewing experience for our customers, and our Prime Video product and tech teams are leveraging AWS and gen AI to ensure we are industry leaders in playback and we’re making huge strides on personalization.
One highlight is Dialogue Boost—a unique tool that uses AI to enhance dialogue clarity, ensuring you never miss a word. This feature is exclusive to Prime Video and works on any device without additional equipment.
Our generative AI analyzes plot points and character arcs to recommend shows tailored to your preferences. Plus, our new X-Ray Recaps provide customized summaries, helping you catch up quickly after a break.
We’re also pioneering AI in live sports. Our focus on playback quality and the complexity in streaming over 100k live events this year, including some of the largest live events in the world such as the NFL, Premier League, Champions League, and the NBA.
Our innovation is not limited to just the viewing and user experience, but also in how we deliver high-impact storytelling for our customers with our local originals. In 2024, we premiered Every Minute Counts, which tells the story of the 1985 earthquake that shook Mexico City and left a trail of devastation. For this series, we built Latin America’s first-ever virtual production studio in Mexico and Latin America.
What’s your long-term vision for Prime Video’s international growth, and how do you see the platform shaping the global entertainment landscape?
Our goal is to help customers cut through the clutter and find the programming they love, personalized to them, with one password, one billing relationship, and one easy-to-use interface available on every connected device in the world. We want to be the place where customers can simply ask “What’s the best movie for me?” instead of having to first decide which app to open. And I think our business model will inform the evolution of streaming services. I think those services that have the best chance of thriving in this competitive environment will be those that are able to make a customer’s search for content as easy as possible, whether than be through aggregation or consolidation.
Prime Video is a differentiator among streaming services, providing a first-stop entertainment destination for our customers, offering the world’s largest selection of series, movies, documentaries and live sports in one app, be it entertainment produced by Amazon MGM Studios exclusively for Prime members, licensed movies and series, content from other services made accessible as an add-on subscription, the largest selection of blockbuster movies and series to rent or buy, or FAST live linear channels.
Prime Video is a truly global business, available in over 200 countries and territories, with a fully localized offering in a large number of countries – meaning customers can easily explore our streaming service, rent or buy store, add-on channel subscriptions and more, with their preferred local language and payment preferences.
2024 marked a significant milestone for Amazon MGM Studios, as we saw extraordinary success across both film and series. As we look to 2025, we remain committed to building on this momentum, pushing boundaries, and continuing to deliver exceptional content that resonates with audiences worldwide. Prime Video further established itself as a global, premier destination for sports fans worldwide. We have worked hard to deliver sports fans year-round programming by continuing to expand our offering, now with NFL, NBA, WNBA, NASCAR, UEFA Champions League, NWSL, and more up and running in 2025.
Away from the content itself, our Prime Video product and tech teams are committed to delivering the best streaming experience for customers and are leveraging AWS and gen AI to ensure we are industry leaders in playback and we’re making huge strides on personalization too. There’s so much more to come.
How does Prime Video adapt its content strategy to cater the specificities of international markets?
In order for customers to choose Prime Video we need to offer programming that is differentiated from elsewhere. We want our shows to have a distinct flavor and we’re building a recognizable personality for our programming in each country in which we offer a bespoke Prime Video service. On our Originals strategy, we’ve spent time cultivating a truly distinct Amazon MGM Studios commissioning vision, stemming directly from Jen Salke (Head of Amazon MGM Studios), which we bring to life globally through standout International Originals, like Spain’s Culpa trilogy or Germany’s Maxton Hall. These TV series and movies stand shoulder-to-should on Prime Video alongside huge US titles like The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power, Fallout, Citadel, and You’re Cordially Invited, which resonate with audiences all around the world.
Our strategy has always been to produce local movies and series that have an outsized impact with local audiences, however we’re increasingly seeing that our international Originals travel beyond boarders. In fact, our Spanish YA movie Culpa Tuya has just become our biggest ever international Original at launch ever with 90% of streams coming from viewers outside of Spain, which is a trend we’re seeing more each year. Great stories can come from anywhere and resonate everywhere, and the success we’re seeing across genres and regions encourages us to continue investing in locally produced stories for a local and global audience. The audience expects a certain high quality when it comes to our Original productions, and our in-country content teams build a totally localized slate with these Originals at its heart but supported by fantastic licensed content from third parties too.
Culpa Tuya
What is the role of local partnerships with studios, production companies and telcos in expanding Prime Video’s footprint?
We are passionate about cultivating strong partnerships globally, especially with local production companies and creatives, who are crucial when it comes to bringing innovative projects and groundbreaking narratives to Prime Video. We simply couldn’t deliver on our commitment to produce high-impact storytelling and high-quality content that connects with our local and global audiences without these partners. Further, our partnerships with telcos and device partners helps us extend the reach of this great Prime Video content and take it to new audiences where they are already watching.
With so many global markets to explore, how do you decide which regions to prioritize for investment and growth?
Our growth primarily comes from our unique business model which we’ve built by taking a customer first approach. This has helped us design Prime Video as a service that is an entertainment destination for our customers, one which is distinct from other global streaming services. Our aim is to become customers’ first-stop entertainment destination, and to achieve that, we’re playing a different game.
As has been well reported, the future growth for global streaming services is from expansion into international locales, and at Prime Video we’re excited about the opportunity ahead of us to continue to grow subscribers at the rapid rate you have seen to date, both in countries we’re already operating in, and new countries across the world that we’re just starting to invest in local content and marketing. Prioritization is important as we need to ensure we’re using our resources effectively, so we really look at countries where we have opportunity to grow depending on a number of factors, including our current resourcing in the region, Amazon retail’s presence and whether Prime is available for customers, and of course the size and detail of content production opportunity. Not all things have to line up though. We’ve entered countries before Prime and helped build awareness for the service through the video offer before the retail launch, just as we’ve gone bigger in countries where Prime already exists. We’re continually evaluating these opportunities and are lucky enough to have really smart leaders around the world with deep local knowledge and expertise helping us to make these decisions.
Which emerging markets are you most excited about, and why?
We’re in a period of growth and are expanding into new countries and regions. In overseeing international, I’m across all of our businesses outside of the US, including well-established Prime Video countries like UK, Canada, Germany and Japan which continue to drive meaningful growth. We also see outsized growth opportunities in large countries, such as India and Brazil as well as in Europe, where Scandinavia, the Netherlands, and Benelux represent growth opportunities and Emerging LATAM including Argentina, Chile and Colombia. We’ve built and are continuing to build strong teams there – both in Prime Video, on the business strategy side, and Amazon MGM Studios for original content, all looking at how to grow the service for customers. We’re excited by the results we’re seeing but also know there’s a huge opportunity for growth ahead of us.
You Are Cordially Invited
How do you identify the right stories and creators for Prime Video’s original content in international territories?
At Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios, we’re first and foremost focused on ensuring that the content is appealing to local customers in that particular country. That means working with the best local creatives to uncover stories and formats that carry a particular resonance for audiences in that country. We’re looking for both high-quality and more mainstream titles that have a reason why they would be made in Latin America, for example, as opposed to anywhere else in the world.
We’re looking for content that will drive conversations and have an impact on people so that they want to share their experience with their families and friends. LOL - our global comedy unscripted format where comedians are pitted against each other in a battle to make them laugh - is a perfect example of that, which started in Japan and has resulted in more than 20 local adaptations and become Prime Video’s most successful franchise and a bona fide cultural phenomenon everywhere it launches.
What are some of the Prime Video originals that have significantly impacted the international market?
We are very proud to have just announced that Spanish Original young adult movie Culpa Tuya has taken the world by storm, becoming the most-watched International Original on Prime Video ever at launch. The sequel from Mercedes Ron’s best-selling the Culpables book trilogy, Culpa Tuya, launched on Prime Video on December 27 in 240 countries and territories worldwide. At launch, Culpa Tuya ranked number 1 title on Prime Video in over 170 countries, including Spain, France, Italy, Germany, Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Chile and Canada, Top 3 in the U.S. and U.K., and Top 10 in over 220 countries. It has now become the most-watched International Original movie or series on Prime Video at launch globally, with 90% of streams coming from viewers outside of Spain.
In 2024, a number of Prime Video International Originals debuted to record-breaking international success, setting a new bar for viewership of international programming. Seven different countries feature in the Top 10 list of most-watched non-English language International Originals which launched in 2024, reflecting the diverse viewing habits of Prime Video customers.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
With so much content available nowadays and with consumers getting lost in the vast ocean of shows and series, the role of improving the user experience has become crucial. What is Prime Video’s strategy in this respect?
We are constantly innovating to deliver the best viewing experience for our customers, and our Prime Video product and tech teams are leveraging AWS and gen AI to ensure we are industry leaders in playback and we’re making huge strides on personalization.
One highlight is Dialogue Boost—a unique tool that uses AI to enhance dialogue clarity, ensuring you never miss a word. This feature is exclusive to Prime Video and works on any device without additional equipment.
Our generative AI analyzes plot points and character arcs to recommend shows tailored to your preferences. Plus, our new X-Ray Recaps provide customized summaries, helping you catch up quickly after a break.
We’re also pioneering AI in live sports. Our focus on playback quality and the complexity in streaming over 100k live events this year, including some of the largest live events in the world such as the NFL, Premier League, Champions League, and the NBA.
Our innovation is not limited to just the viewing and user experience, but also in how we deliver high-impact storytelling for our customers with our local originals. In 2024, we premiered Every Minute Counts, which tells the story of the 1985 earthquake that shook Mexico City and left a trail of devastation. For this series, we built Latin America’s first-ever virtual production studio in Mexico and Latin America.
What’s your long-term vision for Prime Video’s international growth, and how do you see the platform shaping the global entertainment landscape?
Our goal is to help customers cut through the clutter and find the programming they love, personalized to them, with one password, one billing relationship, and one easy-to-use interface available on every connected device in the world. We want to be the place where customers can simply ask “What’s the best movie for me?” instead of having to first decide which app to open. And I think our business model will inform the evolution of streaming services. I think those services that have the best chance of thriving in this competitive environment will be those that are able to make a customer’s search for content as easy as possible, whether than be through aggregation or consolidation.
