Amazon Prime Video
Why are some films only available in German?
Some international films for a cozy evening on the couch are only streamed in German.
© Ivanko80/Shutterstock.com
Amazon Prime Video offers many films and series in their original language – but not all of them. Why is that?
Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, Disney+ and other streaming services offer subscribers a wide selection of films and series from various countries. The productions are often available in the original language and in a dubbed version, but not always.
Prime Video users can often enjoy more recent films and series as well as genre classics in English, for example. There are always several versions of the streaming service’s own productions. In some cases, however, the service only offers a German language version, especially for older or less well-known works.
The originally French-language animated adventure “Asterix the Gaul”, the horror and mystery strip “Room 1408” with John Cusack (56) and Samuel L. Jackson (74), the western “In a Far Land” with Tom Cruise (60) and Nicole Kidman (55) or the romantic comedy “Actually… Love” with Hugh Grant (62) and many other stars can currently only be accessed in German, for example.
What is the reason?
The aim of the service is to “generally make all available language versions of content available,” explains an Amazon spokesman when asked by the news agency spot on news. “Unfortunately, this is not always possible due to the different contractual situations.” In the case of originals such as “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power”, “Prime Video, as the rights holder, is responsible for the production and provision of dubbed and subtitled versions of the titles”. Therefore, the streaming service can offer several language versions and subtitles for all in-house productions.
“Licensed titles are delivered by third-party contractors,” the Amazon spokesman continues. “The available language and subtitle versions differ depending on the version of the title available from the licensor.” Among other things, Prime Video is continuously working on improving the experience for customers and “filling up available language versions for titles”.
Check the playback language
If you want to stream a film or series on Amazon Prime Video or buy or rent a production that is not included in the subscription, you can first check which language versions are available. After clicking on the series or the film, the respective information is listed under the items “Subtitles” and “Playback languages” on the following overview page.