Amazon's New Ads Take Aim at Local TV

Amazon is rolling out location-based interactive video ads on Prime Video, a direct challenge to local TV's dominance in regional advertising, as first reported by Adweek. The new format allows advertisers to customize national campaigns for viewers in specific ZIP codes or states, reaching Prime Video’s more than 300 million monthly ad-supported viewers in the U.S.

• Think local, stream national: The system lets brands insert local details like dealership information or regional pricing into a single ad creative. Viewers can then click on-screen prompts like "Send to Phone" with their remote, instantly getting an offer sent to their mobile device. The move combines the broad reach of a national campaign with the sharp relevance of a local one, opening up premium streaming inventory to smaller businesses.

• The Amazon pitch: "By bringing local context to streaming campaigns, we’re making it easier for brands to reflect the communities they serve while democratizing access to premium streaming environments," said Jenn Donohue, director of local ad sales at Amazon Ads.

• The proof is in the Purina: The new ad format is powered by Amazon's Geographic Insights and Activation (GIA) system, which taps into the company's massive trove of shopper data to pinpoint promising markets. Amazon is touting a case study where pet-food brand Purina used GIA to drive a 300% jump in new-to-brand page views and a fourfold increase in engagement.

By wedding its massive viewer base with its unparalleled first-party data, Amazon is creating a powerful tool that local broadcasters will find difficult to match, escalating the battle for local ad dollars. The push for local ad dollars is an industry-wide trend, with platforms like Yelp also launching new ad tools to help national brands reach local customers. The move also comes as Amazon feels pressure in the e-commerce space from competitors like TikTok Shop, which has quickly become a major player in the health and beauty category.