Amazon India has announced to discontinue the monthly subscription plan of Prime Membership that costs Rs. 129. This decision has even taken to comply with RBI’s new guideline that orders banks and financial institutions to add a factor of authentication for recurring online transactions.
Amazon has also updated its FAQ page confirming the changes in Prime membership plans. Starting today, the company will not process any new requests for the monthly subscription. So, new users can now choose from a three-month plan or a yearly plan priced at Rs. 329 and Rs. 999 respectively.
Amazon has also temporarily stopped the free trial of Prime Membership starting April 27.
RBI’s new guideline introduces an additional factor of Authentication to make payments safer and more secure. It aims to protect consumers from fraudulent transactions. As per the guideline, Prime membership and the deadline for the Prime membership. Later it was extended to September 30, 2021.
If I explain in simple words, all the recurring transactions will now have to be manually authenticated via an OTP. This rule applies to all transactions via credit cards, debit cards, UPI, and other prepaid payment instruments (PPIs).
Nowadays, most prepaid and postpaid plans offer a year of free subscription to Amazon Prime. You should check with your telecom operator before renewing your Prime Membership.