TV cordcutters have one more reason to rejoice, at least if they’ve got an Amazon Prime membership and enjoy the stories of Stephen King. Amazon announced today that the CBS summer series “Under the Dome”, based on King’s novel, would be available for streaming exclusively from Amazon and free for Prime members. Episodes will be available to purchase or stream four days after they air on CBS, rather than the more standard 24 hours. The series will premiere on CBS June 24, 2013.
This underscores Amazon’s intentions to seriously challenge iTunes, Hulu and Netflix as a major source of streamed television content, coming shortly after the news that the extremely popular “Downton Abbey” would move to Amazon as it’s exclusive home for online availability. Season 3 of that show will become available on Amazon June 18, 2013.
This may also indicate CBS favoring the Amazon waters as opposed to Hulu, where the network has recently struck a deal after notable absence, but primarily for older content, with none of it’s currently produced prime-time shows available. The placing of “Under the Dome” with Amazon is a reminder of the network’s apparent reluctance to bring new content to Hulu.
