The Transition to Internet TV

Internet-based TV is quickly becoming more popular. Platforms like Netflix and Hulu are becoming the forefront in what will be a highly competitive market. Companies like Apple and Google have begun making their own content. Think about it: tech companies making TV shows. Sounds very strange, right? In the coming months and years, keep track of how often you find yourself watching any video-based content on a tablet, phone, or video streaming device. 

Amazon Prime Video Coming To The New Apple TV

A while back, I talked about how Amazon stopped selling the Apple TV on their site because it didn't have the Amazon Prime Video app. This may change soon. Thanks to Dan Bostonweeks, we now know that an Amazon Prime Video app is in development for tvOS. It could potentially be out in the coming weeks according to the tweet. The tweet is embedded below.

I sent feedback to Amazon via the Amazon Instant Video iOS app about supporting tvOS. They say it’s in development. pic.twitter.com/52fYUgtgNs

— Dan Bostonweeks (@danimal) November 28, 2015

Amazon Will Stop Selling Apple TV and Google Chromecast

Amazon will stop selling Apple TV and Chromecast from it's online store on October 29th. For those who don't know, Amazon has it's own TV set-top boxes yearning for some of your TV's real-estate, Fire TV and Fire TV Stick. Amazon's reason is that they don't support Amazon Prime video.

"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."

 While that may seem like an almost legitimate response, since Roku and other devices that support Prime Video remain on the store, I think the real reason is that they are competitor products in general. And that's not good for business if your selling another company's product. That'd be like Microsoft selling iPads to customers who trade in their Surface. After all, Prime Video is not an important part of Prime, Prime Video is not a deal breaker for many, and the lack of Prime Video on a media player would, for the most part, not cause customer confusion. Have you seen the Amazon Prime ads? They all advertise Prime Video and Prime Kindle Books instead of the flagship feature of free two-day shipping. It's because they've been failures and no one's using them. Anyways, that's my rant. If you want the next generation Apple TV, don't expect Prime Video.

Amazon Fire TV

Today, Amazon announced their competitor to the Apple TV, Roku, and Chromecast. Fire TV! Other than the whole HD movies and TV shows idea, games seem to be the big deal for the Fire TV. Although it needs a separate controller, Fire TV is a gaming console with games like Minecraft (Pocket Edition), Asphalt 8, and The Walking Dead. It even has a competitor feature to Apple TV's AirPlay (even the mirroring). To learn more about Fire TV, check out the official site. Fire TV is available now for $99 from Amazon.