Amazon plans to pour $1 billion annually on theater movies

Amazon.com Inc. will spend more than $1 billion annually on 12 to 15 movies that initially play in theaters, according to a Bloomberg report Wednesday. The ambitious outlay, believed to be the most by an internet company on theater-first movies, comes as Amazon dukes it out with video-streaming rivals Walt Disney Co. , Apple Inc. , and Netflix Inc. who are plowing billions of dollars a year to create movie and episodic content. Amazon had no immediate comment.

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