Amazon Will Ban Sale of Apple, Google Video-Streaming Devices • Hacker News Board

Re: Amazon Will Ban Sale of Apple, Google Video-Streaming Devices

#431

Post by dragonwriter » Thu, Oct 01, 2015, 10:07 PM UTC

EGreg wrote: post #428

"by ending the sale of devices from Google Inc. and Apple Inc. that aren’t easily compatible with Amazon’s video service." I predict they'll make it easier soon. Amazon is pulling an "easier to ask forgiveness than permission" approach to negotiations.

> I predict they'll make it easier soon.

Aside from "Amazon said it in a press release", is there any reason to think that these services really aren't "easily compatible with Amazon's video service"?

I mean, lots of other video services support Chromecast and AppleTV, and I haven't heard of it being particularly difficult.

Re: Amazon Will Ban Sale of Apple, Google Video-Streaming Devices

#432

Post by morgosmaci » Thu, Oct 01, 2015, 10:10 PM UTC

poppup wrote: post #410

yid wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> They are destroying their most valuable component of their brand, for a relatively weak one (Prime Video). This is why it almost seems like Amazon's Google+ moment: one underperforming product area somehow manages to convince leadership to change the company's underlying principles in its advantage to the long-term detriment of overall brand perception. Edit: 32 points in 19 mins for this comment. I really hope som…

I was just thinking about how they have buried a great product, google hangouts, inside a me too product, google+, and neglected it bc it doesn't have a business model attached. What a waste! Hangouts is much better and more reliable than Skype, but very difficult to find and sign up for. All it needs is its a stage of its own and a business model and it could destroy Skype, which needs to be destroyed imho. Combined…

http://hangouts.google.com no longer requires a G+ account.

Re: Amazon Will Ban Sale of Apple, Google Video-Streaming Devices

#433

Post by gorkemyurt » Thu, Oct 01, 2015, 10:10 PM UTC

Artistry121 wrote: post #5

I don't think this move is in Amazon's best interests long term. Their competitive edge with Prime is that I go to them first because I assume they'll have what I want, at a fair price and the highest level of convenience. If they are no longer the "Everything Store" then they won't be where I go to for everything...

You should be selling electronic content to be the everything store! That's the whole point. If apple and google tries to stop amazon from selling tv shows or movies, of course amazon is going to fight back

Re: Amazon Will Ban Sale of Apple, Google Video-Streaming Devices

#434

Post by discordance » Thu, Oct 01, 2015, 10:13 PM UTC

bduerst wrote: post #242

RIMR wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I always have a phone, tablet or computer within reach, so it's not a problem to have no dedicated remote (one less thing cluttering my living room, actually). I also use legal-greyarea services like Put.io, which only work on Chromecast because of how open the ecosystem is. Before this I used a Boxee Box, which I preferred over the competitors because you could load it full of homebrew (including Put.io). The Chrome…

Put.io is such a good service it hurts - it usually takes 60 seconds to go from thinking about watching just about any movie to streaming it on your TV via chromecast. It kind of annoys me that I didn't think of setting something up that was similar.

Put.io's terms are a bit scary for the regular illegal use it's usually advertised for -

'Put.io may disclose specific contact information when we determine that such disclosure is necessary to comply with law, to cooperate with or seek assistance from law enforcement or to protect the interests or safety of Put.io or other visitors to the site or users of the Services. Also, your contact information may be passed on to a third party in the event of a merger, acquisition, consolidation, divestiture, or a bankruptcy of Put.io.'

Re: Amazon Will Ban Sale of Apple, Google Video-Streaming Devices

#435

Post by reitanqild » Thu, Oct 01, 2015, 10:15 PM UTC

newjersey wrote: post #190

Artistry121 wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a really good point. One difference here is that Amazon can quietly go back on their decision if it doesn't work and they see people aren't viewing the Apple TV, Chromecast and Fire as substitutes- since it is just a few listings. Google integrated everything with Google+ the vestiges are still all around.

For example, it still isn't possible to create a YouTube channel without Google Plus.

Get over it already, single signon is here to stay a n d it is (now) easy to create a bunch of different "pages"-identities that are hard to trace back to your main account.

Or am I wrong?

Re: Amazon Will Ban Sale of Apple, Google Video-Streaming Devices

#436

Post by vectorjohn » Thu, Oct 01, 2015, 10:16 PM UTC

untog wrote: post #123

zaphar wrote: post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My wife was just complaining about this very thing. The solution to Prime's streaming issues isn't to ban the sale of Chromecasts it's to add Chromecast support to prime. This is a very odd choice on their part.

Their solution is for you to buy an Amazon Fire Stick and use it instead of your Chromecast.

I got a fire stick when it was on sale for like $20. It is a useless piece of garbage with a terrible user experience. The UI is clunky, as it tries as unsuccessfully as every set top box manufacturer to do everything with a crappy remote. Chromecast did it right and going back to the bad UI of a set top box is just unacceptable anymore.

Re: Amazon Will Ban Sale of Apple, Google Video-Streaming Devices

#437

Post by ewzimm » Thu, Oct 01, 2015, 10:17 PM UTC

jon-wood wrote: post #309

rm_-rf_slash wrote: post #199

Earlier quoted context omitted.

G+ is vestigial at best and creepy at worst, but at least there's something to be said about a giant sprawling octopus of a tech company managing to wrap everything into one, centralized platform. Amazon on the other hand seems to be subscribing to the amputation school of thought. I don't know a soul that's ever bought an Amazon gadget that wasn't exclusively named "Kindle." If people truly preferred Amazon's device…

I'm one of those souls, and really like both the Kindle Fire and Fire TV I have. This move has really soured them to me though - Amazon have a great product in Prime Video and their Fire lineup, a product which doesn't need these sort of shady tactics.

I'm interested in why you consider it shady for a retailer not to sell a product. I don't see Google or Apple selling products from anyone but themselves (mostly. Apple does sell a few accessories and Google has some pure editions which they have a hand in). Pick any retailer, and there are brands and products they don't sell.

I could see it being shady if you were talking about denying people access to things they need, but we're talking about selling on the Internet here. It's not like people will have a hard time buying Apple TVs or Chromecasts because they aren't on Amazon. They just have to type the name into their address bar.

I would guess they got a lot of complaints from people who said they couldn't get Instant Video to work on their streaming devices, someone calculated the cost of customer service vs profits of selling those devices, and decided it wasn't worth it... how is that any different form any other retailer choosing to drop a product because it isn't working for them? Customer service costs and returns are probably the most common reason for anyone dropping something.

I know Amazon has a bigger selection than pretty much everyone, but does that give them a moral imperative to not discriminate on products? Seems like people are considering Amazon as if they were a public utility, which seems like a pretty impressive achievement for them.

Re: Amazon Will Ban Sale of Apple, Google Video-Streaming Devices

#438

Post by driverdan » Thu, Oct 01, 2015, 10:18 PM UTC

awakeasleep wrote: post #34

driverdan wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It came to a close a long time ago. Amazon refuses to sell many legal products, eg caffeine powder and anything with the confederate flag.

Just in case anyone is interested in caffeine powder (interesting because it sublimates) do yourself a favor and don't order it. The smallest orders available online are enough to kill an elephant, and you need a $500+ scale to dose it accurately enough to keep a human from overdosing. And while most human overdoses will be uniquely unpleasant but not lethal, there is definitely the potential for a lethal dose if som…

The best way to use bulk caffeine is to dissolve it in water. It's highly soluble and you can easily measure larger volumes of water.

Re: Amazon Will Ban Sale of Apple, Google Video-Streaming Devices

#439

Post by mark_l_watson » Thu, Oct 01, 2015, 10:20 PM UTC

The largest reason this is a bad idea for Amazon is that right now is an important time for the "competition of the walled gardens" - I don't expect any of Apple, Google, or Amazon to do a winner take all, but someone is going to end up winning most of this pie.

I am a tech nut, and have been since I first got to try programming a computer in the early 1960s. However I am getting tired of too much tech diversity. I have my Music collection on three different services (Amazon cloud, Google music, and Apple). Amazon cloud has the widest coverage over my devices, but I could see myself in the future choosing one vendor. I also subscribe to Netflix, Hulu, and HBO Go. Three walled gardens is getting to be tedious.

I have had my issues with Apple in the past, but Apple probably has the best shot of providing most everything that I need sometme in the future. Right now, Siri is far beyond Google Now as an AI assistant but that may change. Amazon Echo's Alexa is pretty good, but a really narrow context.

Stuff like not carrying rival's products is probably a bad move.

Re: Amazon Will Ban Sale of Apple, Google Video-Streaming Devices

#440

Post by deckard1 » Thu, Oct 01, 2015, 10:20 PM UTC

CPLX wrote: post #391

x0x0 wrote: post #203

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ditto, though here's the problem with amazon: buying apple stuff on there is a shit experience. Go there right now and type macbook pro in the search. You'll get a page of results with these top results: Apple MacBook Pro MF839LL/A 13.3-Inch Laptop with Retina Display (128 GB) NEWEST VERSION Apple MacBook Pro MD101LL/A 13.3-Inch Laptop Apple MacBook Pro MJLQ2LL/A 15.4-Inch Laptop with Retina Display (NEWEST VERSION)…

I feel like this is actually a potentially serious problem for Amazon, and it's getting worse. The other day I went to buy a pair of standard issue Apple headphones. The same exact ones that come with the iPhone. Yeah they are slightly overpriced but I am really used to them and they sound good and my pair was getting ratty and I wanted another one. It was literally impossible to do. Try it and see what I mean. I see…

yes. I've felt this way lately. The overall quality of Amazon has gone downhill sharply. It's resembling eBay or even Craigslist today. I was considering getting Prime a few days back when it was on sale. But I remembered that the majority of things I buy today aren't shipped by Amazon even. Never mind their whole "Prime day" fiasco (which Amazon never owned up to).

From an ethical standpoint, I'm also starting to wonder if Bezos is one of the most unhinged, corrupt people on this planet. Stories from their top tech employees down to their warehouse workers have been nothing short of horrifying.