Amazon has just announced that it will stop selling Google Chromecast and Apple TV products from their massive online retail store for the reason that these are not easily compatible with their video streaming service, Amazon Prime Video. Amazon made the announcement following the recent refresh of both Google and Apple’s products, prompting tech pundits to ask if Amazon just became insecure of the improving features of these two media streaming devices.
The official reason was given in an email to Amazon sellers stating that the Chromecast and Apple TV did not “interact well” with Prime Video. The email also said that listing for these products will be taken down by October 29, giving sellers at least a month to sell existing inventory. The announcement also says that Roku, Microsoft’s Xbox, and Sony’s PlayStation will not be affected by this, since they work well with Prime Video. Of course, Amazon’s own Fire TV Stick streaming device will benefit from this.
This might be considered a business retaliation to Apple TV, since Apple purposely did not support Prime Video. But surprisingly, Google had made provisions to support most apps with Chromecast, including Prime Video. It was Amazon who chose not to have Prime Video on Chromecast. All things being equal, we can say that Amazon is just trying to protect its interests. “Over the last three years, Prime Video has become an important part of Prime,” read the email from Amazon to market sellers. “It’s important that the streaming media players we sell interact well with Prime Video in order to avoid customer confusion.”
Well, this at least makes things clear on where Amazon sits with its video streaming products and services. The Seattle-based retail company will try to protect its interests – specifically Amazon Prime Video, and the Amazon Fire TV Stick – as much as possible. Your move, Google and Apple.
VIA: Bloomberg
I doubt this will affect sales of said devices, not increase the low sales and take up of both fire TV, and Amazon prime video.
I have Chromecast and Fire tv stick. Chromecast is by far the better product. I can’t get the Fire TV stick to work properly half the time.
“Over the last three years, Prime Video has become an important part of Prime,” “It’s important that the streaming media players we sell interact well with Prime Video in order to avoid customer confusion.”…Interestingly enough, if Amazon is trying to protect their streaming service, shouldn’t they be protecting it against… maybe… Hulu, Netflix… who are direct streaming competitors, and who ensure there services are compatible with all major devices? After all, at the end of the day, the devices mainly facilitate the service via the apps. So i find Amazons position very weak, dubious at best
Amazon is solely responsible for the state of prime video support on both chromecast and apple tv, so this move and pathetic excuse are loads of crap.