Amazon Prime Monthly Membership Fee Rises to $12.99

NEW YORK (AP) —

Amazon Prime, Amazon

Amazon is raising the price of its Prime membership monthly plan from $10.99 to $12.99. The fee of $99 for an annual membership will not change, the company said Friday.

The online retailer had added the monthly payment option about two years ago as a way to hook shoppers — especially during the year-end shopping season — who wanted faster free shipping, but didn’t want to commit to an annual fee. The Seattle-based company does not disclose how many Prime members it has.

Besides free two-day shipping, Prime members get other perks, such as access to Amazon’s video- and music-streaming services.

New monthly members pay the higher fee starting Friday. Qualifying college students will pay $6.49 a month, up from $5.49. Amazon.com Inc. said existing monthly members will start paying the higher fees next month.

Amazon said its $5.99-a-month Prime membership for low-income people who receive government assistance is not affected by the price increase. Amazon launched the discounted Prime membership last year for people who have a valid Electronic Benefits Transfer card.

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