LONDON, March 27, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --
Amazon continues to invest heavily
in exclusive content for Prime customers with the addition of the
gritty action drama that is executive produced by Hollywood icon Michael
Bay
Prime Instant Video will premiere
the show and be the only movie and TV streaming subscription
service in the UK where members can watch season one of the
critically acclaimed show
Amazon has today announced that ferocious pirate drama series
"Black Sails", from the U.S. network STARZ, will launch exclusively
on Prime Instant Video on April
4th, making the UK's largest subscription
streaming service the only platform where members can watch the
critically acclaimed show in the UK.
Executive produced by cinema legend Michael Bay ("Transformers", "Pearl Harbor", "Armageddon"), "Black
Sails" is set 20 years prior to Robert
Louis Stevenson's "Treasure
Island". The fast-paced pirate epic follows Captain Flint
and his men as they fight for survival in the Bahamas in a ruthless dog-eat-dog world of
marauders and criminals. A haven for thieves and pirates, betrayal
is rife, and wits are a weapon for survival.
Starring Toby Stephens ("Die
Another Day", "The Machine"), Jessica
Parker Kennedy ("90210"), Tom
Hopper ("Merlin", "Doctor Who"), Zach McGowan ("Shameless"), and Clara Paget ("One Day", "Johnny English
Reborn"), "Black Sails" delves into the darkest side of pirate
life, rooting itself in murder, theft and lawlessness.
From April 4th, members
of Prime Instant Video can immerse themselves in the gritty and
exotic world of the 18th century high-seas drama with
all 8 episodes of "Black Sails" available to stream on over 400
devices at launch.
"'Black Sails' is the kind of show with enough twists and turns
to make viewers want to consume the whole adventure in one go,"
said Tim Leslie, Vice President of
Amazon Instant Video for the UK. "All eight episodes of
the big-budget drama will be available from the 4th
April, allowing those with an appetite for the pirate life to
immerse themselves completely in the story of Captain Flint and his
crew."
"We've seen the sanitised version of pirates in films and TV
shows many times before, and this is a more realistic, dangerous
and sexy take on the pirate life," said Jason Ropell, Head of Amazon Instant Video
International Content Acquisition. "What makes the show so
fascinating is that it's actually based on real pirates, much like
'Vikings' is based on actual Norsemen. The epic drama allows
viewers a snapshot of an infamous and traditionally feared culture.
It's already an incredibly popular show in the US, and we're
thrilled to be able to offer our UK members such an exciting
viewing experience. "
For more information about Amazon Prime, visit
http://www.amazon.co.uk/prime. For more information about
Prime Instant Video, visit http://www.amazon.co.uk/primevideo.
-Notes to
Editors-
About Amazon.co.uk
Amazon.co.uk opened its virtual doors in October 1998 and strives to be Earth's most
customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover
anything they might want to buy online, and endeavours to offer its
customers the lowest possible prices.
Amazon.co.uk and other sellers offer millions of new,
refurbished and used items in categories such as Baby, Books, Car
& Motorbike, Clothing, DIY & Tools, DVD, Electronics &
Photo, Grocery, Health & Beauty, Home & Garden, Jewellery,
MP3, Music, Musical Instruments & DJ, Office, PC, Pet Supplies,
Shoes, Software, Sports & Leisure, Toys & Games, Video
Games and Watches.
Kindle Paperwhite is our most-advanced e-reader ever with 62%
more pixels and 25% increased contrast, a patented built-in front
light for reading in all lighting conditions, extra-long battery
life, and a thin and light design. The new latest generation
Kindle, the lightest and smallest Kindle, now features new,
improved fonts and faster page turns. Kindle Fire HD is our
most-advanced tablet, with a stunning customised high-definition
display, exclusive Dolby audio with dual stereo speakers, high-end
laptop-grade Wi-Fi with dual-band support and dual antennas/MIMO,
enough storage for HD content, and the latest generation processor
and graphics engine. The all-new Kindle Fire features a faster
processor for 40% faster performance, twice the memory, and longer
battery life.
Amazon Web Services provides Amazon's developer customers with
access to in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon's
own back-end technology platform, which developers can use to
enable virtually any type of business.
Amazon.co.uk is a trading name for Amazon EU S.à.r.l, Amazon
Services Europe S.à.r.l and Amazon Media EU S.à.r.l. All three are
wholly owned subsidiaries of global online retailer Amazon.com, Inc
(NASDAQ:AMZN), located in Seattle,
Washington. Amazon and its affiliates operate websites,
including http://www.amazon.com, http://www.amazon.co.uk,
http://www.amazon.de, http://www.amazon.co.jp,
http://www.amazon.fr, http://www.amazon.ca, http://www.amazon.cn,
http://www.amazon.it, http://www.amazon.es and
http://www.amazon.com.br. As used herein, "Amazon.com," "we," "our"
and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries,
unless the context indicates otherwise.
About Starz
Starz (NASDAQ: STRZA, STRZB) is a leading integrated global
media and entertainment company with operating units that provide
premium subscription video programming on domestic U.S. pay
television channels (Starz Networks), global content distribution
(Starz Distribution) and animated television and movie production
(Starz Animation), http://www.starz.com.
Starz Networks is a leading provider of premium subscription
video programming through the flagship STARZ® and ENCORE® pay TV
networks which showcase premium original programming and movies to
U.S. multichannel video distributors, including cable operators,
satellite television providers, and telecommunications companies.
As of December 31, 2013, STARZ and
ENCORE serve a combined 57.1 million subscribers, including 22.2
million at STARZ, and 34.9 million at ENCORE, making them the
largest pair of premium flagship channels in the U.S. STARZ®
and ENCORE®, along with Starz Networks' third network MOVIEPLEX®,
air more than 1,000 movies monthly across 17 linear networks,
complemented by On Demand and authenticated online offerings
through STARZ PLAY, ENCORE PLAY, and MOVIEPLEX PLAY. Starz
Distribution develops, produces and acquires entertainment content,
distributing it to consumers globally on DVD, digital formats and
traditional television. Starz Distribution's home video,
digital media and worldwide distribution business units distribute
original programming content produced by Starz, as well as
entertainment content for itself and third parties. Starz
Animation produces animated TV and movie content for studios,
networks, distributors and audiences worldwide.
Forward-Looking Statements
This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section
21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may
differ significantly from management's expectations. These
forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that
include, among others, risks related to competition, management of
growth, new products, services and technologies, potential
fluctuations in operating results, international expansion,
outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment center
optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and
strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system
interruption, inventory, government regulation and taxation,
payments and fraud. More information about factors that potentially
could affect Amazon.com's financial results is included in
Amazon.com's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission,
including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent
filings.
Amazon Web Services provides Amazon's developer customers with
access to in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon's
own back-end technology platform, which developers can use to
enable virtually any type of business.
Amazon.co.uk is a trading name for Amazon EU S.a.r.l, Amazon
Services Europe S.a.r.l and Amazon Media EU S.a.r.l. All three are
wholly owned subsidiaries of global online retailer Amazon.com, Inc
(NASDAQ:AMZN), located in Seattle,
Washington. Amazon and its affiliates operate websites,
including http://www.amazon.com, http://www.amazon.co.uk,
http://www.amazon.de, http://www.amazon.co.jp,
http://www.amazon.fr, http://www.amazon.ca, http://www.amazon.cn,
http://www.amazon.it, and http://www.amazon.es. As used herein,
"Amazon.com," "we," "our" and similar terms include Amazon.com,
Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates
otherwise.
"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995: Statements in this press release regarding
Amazon.Co.UK Ltd's business which are not historical facts are
"forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties.
For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, which could cause
actual results to differ from those contained in the
forward-looking statements, see "Risk Factors" in the Company's
Annual Report or Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal
year.