Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has admitted it was "very, very, very expensive" to bring Jeremy Clarkson and his Top Gear co-stars to his digital television service.
The entrepreneur tied up a deal for Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond to front a Top Gear-style motoring show for Amazon Prime customers reportedly worth NZ$379.3 million.
Clarkson's BBC contract was not renewed after he punched a member of the show's staff during a "fracas", prompting the Top Gear trio to seek new ventures.
In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph's business supplement, Bezos said the three stars were "worth a lot of money and they know it".
"I think we're in a golden age of television so if you go back in time even just five years, you couldn't get A-list talent to do TV serials, or if you could, it was a rare thing.