Amazon‘s plan to grow its live shopping empire now includes a new game show. The retail giant has announced Buy It Now, which will apply the signature format of Shark Tank to the world of ecommerce.
Like Shark Tank, Amazon’s Buy It Now will feature a rotating cast of judges. Mainstream celebs, including actor Gwyneth Paltrow and designer Christian Siriano, will join Amazon execs to evaluate pitches from independent entrepreneurs. A studio audience will also be on hand to weigh the presented products. Actor and comedian J.B. Smoove (of Curb Your Enthusiasm fame) will serve as the emcee.
The winner of each episode of Buy It Now will receive $20,000, but the game show has plenty more to offer its contestants beyond a simple cash prize. Finalists will be featured on a Buy It Now page on the Amazon website, where their products will benefit from added visibility.
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Amazon has already experimented with the concept of a live show that pushes products to viewers. Style Code Live premiered to fanfare in 2016 but ended a year later.
To develop another take on that idea, Amazon turned to the world of British television. Buy It Now is co-produced by Studio Lambert, the outfit behind the transatlantic hit The Traitors. Alongside Amazon MGM Studios, London-based Studio Lambert is adapting a format that first premiered via British broadcaster Channel 4.
Shark Tank variants have become relatively common in the social video world, with Karat’s creator-led show Supernova serving as a prominent example. Amazon seems bullish on game show formats in general; Deadline notes that the streamer’s other recent pickups include Are You Smarter Than A Celebrity? (hosted by Travis Kelce) and a Jeopardy! spinoff based around pop culture trivia.
Will Buy It Now successfully translate a concept that paid dividends for entrepreneurs across the pond? Amazon subscribers will find out at the end of next month; according to The Wall Street Journal, the new version of Buy It Now will premiere on October 30.
