“This is why owning physical media is so important.”

Amazon customers filed a class-action lawsuit after discovering they had purchased a viewing license, not the actual content they intended to access. The suit accuses the massive corporation of a “bait and switch,” alleging it misled film and TV lovers into thinking they would have guaranteed permanent access to what they paid for.

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The news sparked widespread frustration with Amazon across social media over this practice and others.

The case: Did Amazon violate California law?

The lawsuit, filed by Lisa Reingold in California, challenges Amazon’s practice of using the word “buy” when you hand over your cash for a movie or season of your favorite TV show on Prime. The fine print, however, explains what you’re actually buying.

“You receive a license to the video and you agree to our terms,” it reads.

A license is not the same as the actual product. That license could end up being to nothing the moment Amazon loses the rights to the content, which happens regularly with streaming services.

Reingold found out about this reality when she could no longer access Bella and the Bulldogs — Volume 4 after buying it from Amazon for $20.79 in May.

The suit argues that California law prohibits this under a digital property rights transparency law that went into effect at the beginning of 2025.

“The law declares that ‘it shall be unlawful for a seller of a digital good to advertise or offer for sale a digital good to a purchaser with the terms “buy,” “purchase,” or any other term which a reasonable person would understand to confer an unrestricted ownership interest in the digital good,’” it states.

Exceptions to the law require the seller to make it clear to the customer that they’re buying a license instead of the digital good itself. Complainants argue that Amazon failed to meet these standards.

“One of the biggest scams of the century”

The transition from owning physical copies of media to digital purchasing has repeatedly caused frustration and anger among consumers over the years.

Fans of the video game The Crew took publisher Ubisoft to court in 2024 after the company withdrew digital support. Angry gamers, unable to play what they paid for, accused Ubisoft of violating multiple California state laws.

That case is ongoing, as is irritation against large corporations for this kind of practice.

The prevalence of subscription based services is one of the biggest scams of the century.

You pay for something you never actually own. You pay for the right to borrow everything and end up with no assets.

Everything becomes a forever expense. https://t.co/4l6kmM5p8W

— Phan | Confused Era (@movie_phan) August 26, 2025

“The prevalence of subscription-based services is one of the biggest scams of the century,” said X user @movie_phan in a response to the new lawsuit. “You pay for something you never actually own. You pay for the right to borrow everything and end up with no assets.”

“Everything becomes a forever expense.”

“Death to digital ‘purchasing,’” declared @ohMyG00och. “Turn this up!!”

Others pointed to this as another reason why owning physical copies of audiovisual works is becoming a new trend.

“This is why owning physical media is so important; they can take away your digital purchases at any time,” wrote @Roems.

Plenty more X users took the opportunity to complain about another recent and reviled Amazon practice—foisting ads upon those who paid not to see them.

“Need to sue them for ads too,” said @PoppaPetty74. “Considering they market Prime Video as a streaming service with no ads.”

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You’ve had a busy week, so now is the time to put your feet up and enjoy some quality entertainment. There is plenty on offer if you have an Amazon Prime Video subscription, but not all of it is actually worth watching.

To save you the endless scrolling, here are three TV shows that you should binge over the coming days.

3

We Were Liars

Unintentionally, all three shows I’ve selected are based on books. Kicking things off, We Were Liars is based on the young-adult novel by E. Lockhart. It’s about a teenager called Cady (Emily Alyn Lind) who spends her summers on a private island with her wealthy family; a group of them dub themselves the Liars. When Cady finds herself washed up on the beach with no recollection of the events that led up to it, she sets out to discover what happened.

The chemistry between the characters is believable, even if their privilege makes them tricky to root for, and the central mystery at the heart of the show is intriguing (well done if you figure out what’s happened before it’s revealed). It takes a little while to get going, and you might feel you’ve seen enough rich families bickering to last a lifetime, but stick with it because it will hook you.

Amazon hasn’t officially renewed the show for a second season, though the final episode ends with potential for more, and there is source material available. Lockhart published a prequel novel called Family of Liars in 2022, and a sequel to the original, called We Fell Apart, is due later this year.

2

Reacher

The first Jack Reacher novel by Lee Child was published in 1997 and it kicked off a series that is still going strong to this day. The title character is a former US Army military police officer who now drifts through the country and solves crimes on his terms. In 2012, director Christopher McQuarrie and star Tom Cruise teamed up for a movie with their take on the character; some took umbrage with the fact Cruise was far from Reacher’s described dominating height. The movie was fine (and spawned a sequel), but McQuarrie and Cruise did better work with the Mission: Impossible franchise.

Enter Reacher, a TV show from Prime Video, which so far has adapted the books Killing Floor, Bad Luck and Trouble, and Persuader. The series stars Alan Ritchson, who certainly checks the “imposing presence” box and makes the fight scenes great fun to watch, but he also sells Reacher’s intelligence and morality. The show is just downright entertaining, with plenty of action and a welcome sense of humor, and the story unfolds in a way that keeps you gripped.

A fourth season was confirmed last year, so now it’s a waiting game until it’s released. There’s no word yet on exactly when that will be, but I’ll be streaming it as soon as it drops—and if you decide to binge Reacher this weekend, I suspect you’ll be hotly anticipating the further adventures too.

1

Good Omens

Good Omens began life as a 1990 fantasy novel by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. While adapted for other mediums like stage and radio, the story never made it to screen—director Terry Gilliam was attached to a film project that stalled for years. Then, almost three decades after the book’s publication, that changed with the release of a TV show as a co-production between the BBC and Amazon.

It stars David Tennant as the demon Crowley and Michael Sheen as the angel Aziraphale, who live on Earth and have come to enjoy their time on the planet. That comfort is thrown into disarray when they learn about the impending end of the world, said to be brought about by the Antichrist, who in this case is a young boy. The chemistry between the two leads is undeniable (watch Staged afterward for more) and their presence is the best part of the whimsical and sprawling show.

The first season remains faithful to the book, while the second goes beyond the source material but still retains its core appeal, with an amusing story of Archangel Gabriel (Jon Hamm, on great form) losing his memory. A full third and final season was originally planned, but Gaiman left the project due to assault allegations, so now the show is wrapping up with a 90-minute episode instead.

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If you binge these shows over a weekend, that’s great bang for your buck, even if you’re not using all of Amazon Prime’s benefits. Grab the remote and enjoy!

If you’re a slasher movie devotee, you probably know about I Know What You Did Last Summer.

The 1997 movie based on Lois Duncan’s novel is an iconic entry in the genre — so much so that it was followed by two movies, a TV show and now another feature film.

If you’re getting ready to watch the new movie, it’s time to catch up on the previous content.

Watch With Us is giving you the scoop on where you can watch every installment in the I Know What You Did Last Summer franchise.

‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’ (1997)

The first movie adaptation starred Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe and Freddie Prinze Jr. as a group of teenagers who — you guessed it — did something very bad last summer. They hit someone in a drunk driving accident and got rid of the body. One year later, they’re pursued by a terrifying figure known as the Fisherman (Muse Watson).

The original remains the best in the series and still holds up as one of the better post-Scream horror flicks.

You can stream the first movie with an MGM+ subscription or rent it on Apple TV+.

‘I Still Know What You Did Last Summer’ (1998)

In this second installment, Julie James (Hewitt) is trying to escape her guilt through a Bahamas vacation with best friend Karla (Brandy) and boyfriend Ray (Prinze). But the murder and mayhem follow them to the island, too. Will the vacation of their dreams turn out to be a nightmare they can’t escape from?

This sequel is not currently streaming anywhere, but you can rent it on Amazon Prime Video or Apple TV+.

‘I’ll Always Know What You Did Last Summer’ (2006)

This straight-to-DVD sequel takes a different cast of teens, led by Brooke Nevin and David Paetkau, and puts them in the Fisherman’s crosshairs.

When these kids pull a prank that goes horribly wrong and leads to someone getting killed for real, the real Fisherman (Don Shanks) begins to hunt them down.

I’ll Always Know What You Did Last Summer is also not currently streaming, but it’s available for rent on Amazon Prime Video or Apple TV+.

‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’ (2021)

Did you know that Amazon Prime Video rebooted the franchise as a TV series in 2021? Madison Iseman (Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle) plays a set of twins, Allison and Lennon, one of whom is accidentally killed by a group of teenagers who are friends with Allison. (Brianne Tju, Ezekiel Goodman, Ashley Moore and Sebastian Amoruso play the other teens.)

Though the series only ran one season and received mostly poor reviews, Iseman’s dual performance as Allison and Lennon is worth a watch.

You can stream the series I Know What You Did Last Summer on Amazon Prime Video.

The new movie is a direct follow-up to I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, with Hewitt and Prinze Jr. reprising their roles —so study up and watch them all now.