Amazon has announced the launch of its Prime service in Singapore, which provides customers exclusive access to benefits such as fast shipping, streaming and gaming.

Singapore customers will be able to enjoy Prime benefits including exclusive access to free two-hour delivery on orders over S$40 with thousands of items and unlimited free international shipping on orders above S$60 on more than five million items from Amazon US, which can be ordered through the Prime Now App.

In addition, Prime members in Singapore will enjoy unlimited access to popular and award-winning Amazon Prime Originals like the second season of The Grand Tour and various other shows. They will also enjoy access to gaming benefits with Twitch Prime, at no additional cost.

Amazon Prime in Singapore will be available for S$8.99 per month and for a limited time, customers can sign up for S$2.99 per month.

“We want to make the lives of customers living in Singapore better every day. Customers in Singapore have been enjoying ultra-fast delivery with Prime Now since July, and now, the introduction of Amazon Prime will take their shopping experience to the next level,” said Jamil Ghani, vice president, Amazon Prime international.

“Now with an even wider selection of international items available for unlimited free international shipping, along with unlimited access to Prime Video and Twitch Prime, this membership is designed to offer the best of Amazon. And this is just the beginning. We will keep making Prime better, adding even more selection and benefits.”

Forrester senior analyst Xiaofeng Wang noted that Amazon made a splash when it first launched its Prime Now services in Singapore and has made improvements to the service since then, as in the early days, it was unable to fulfill the two-hour delivery promise and had limited product categories and options.

“Consumers who had to endure these disappointments were not motivated to use it regularly or ever again. However, the delivery services are more stable now, and product categories and options have both been enlarged. Amazon has also been adding more local brands that are preferred by local customers, such as Sunshine bread and Bebe Bamboo, as well as collaborating with local partners such as UOB for promotions,” she explained.

However, to succeed in the market, Wang asserted that Amazon needs to play to its strengths because besides its two-hour delivery promise, consumers in Singapore expect Amazon’s own products like Echo, Kindle and digital books to be made available to them, have access to more products and brands from the US, as well as digital content like games and movies. These are unique offerings that Amazon can provide to the market that its local competitors do not yet provide, she added.

“Now, with the launch of Amazon Prime, Singapore consumers can finally have access to these products and services, and can get more value when they shop on Prime Now. In addition, with the attractive loyalty program offerings and promotions that Amazon is offering, consumers will be willing to give Amazon another shot,” said Wang. “Whether Amazon will be able to retain them and turn them into loyal customers will depend on the consistency of its service quality and if Amazon can provide more value to their customers that they are otherwise unable to get from other retailers.”

Amazon officially entered Southeast Asia via Singapore in July and also launched its Marketplace service in Australia last month.