The question: “I rented a movie yesterday and like it a lot. Can I pay the difference to buy it, i.e. I rented it for $2.99 and it sells for $14.99, can I pay $12 to buy it?”

Answer: No. [here’s the exact wording from customer service]

Asking

RLW asked: “If we rented a movie can we go ahead and purchase? Will we be charged for rental and purchase?!!! Or just the additional amount?!”

Got answered: “You’ll be charged the full price, there is no discount for having rented the movie, they are two separate transactions.”

Another One Asked

ML asked @ Rent To Buy

I wonder if it is possible to apply the rental price if after watching you decide you want to purchase the title? I have wanted to buy some movies but have not because I already paid the rental price and couldn't bring myself to spending THAT much more for a movie. This would be a great idea.

And got answered with: “Thank you for taking the time to provide your feedback about renting and buying Prime Video titles. At this time you can’t purchase Prime Video titles applying the rental price.”

Here’s an Idea for Amazon Prime Video

How hard can it be to update the code to support this rent-to-buy feature for Amazon Prime Video movies and TV shows? Like most leading-edge tech companies, make a data-informed decision and see what people will do and if revenues will increase. I’m thinking it will, but the proof is in the pudding.

Suppose it is difficult to change the code to discount the purchase price of a previously rented video, then use a customer service request form that applies an amazon.com credit that can be used for a future purchase. Test this for a period of time, and see if it increases sales to the satisfaction of the decision-makers.

Know anyone at amazon.com?

Why Amazon Can’t Credit Rental Fee Towards Buying the Video

Thanks for JP, got the answer for why amazon.com (or anyone) can’t apply the rental fee as a credit towards buying a movie or TV show. It’s because of the licensing fee that is charged by the movie-maker, producer, owner, or whatever that entity is called. Here’s how it was explained to me:

About the prime rental vs buying… It’s a licensing issue by the content owner, not a technical limitation.

Same reason buying a digital copy of a movie is the same price as the DVD even though there is not printing/manufacturing cost for digital.