Amazon Debuts App For Shopping on the Apple TV

[benjitek]

...Amazon does not (and cannot) carry every product ever made. But... most customers will expect Amazon to carry products from the major players in each category...

Fortunately Amazon's search feature is easy, comprehensive, and fast -- it won't take them long to discover they don't carry the ATV, then they can move on to Apple... Best Buy... Costco... Sam's Club... Target... Walmart... or any of the other retailers that do carry it.

 

[liberte1776]

Now how about Amazon Prime Video for ATV, geniuses... *rolls eyes*

 

[truthertech]

Amazon doesn't make any claim or pretense of selling the ATV4 or iTunes purchases. Apple does.

Fortunately Amazon's search feature is easy, and fast -- it won't take them long to discover they don't carry the ATV, then they can move on...

It's really a non-issue since you can easily buy ATV in many places, it has little to no impact. Amazon simply wants to deny Google and Apple exposure to their products as they race for mind share. They make little profit, only caring at this point to absorb as much into the collective like their Borg role models. (If you look closely in the image below, Picard and Bezos resemblance is striking. Coincidence???)


"We are the Borg. Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Your culture will adapt to service us. Resistance is futile.

 

[zapmymac]

I gave up on Amazon & [Vudu] & Apple fighting over the 30% thing (which is important), and bought a 4K TV at Costco that also had the Amazon App. My old TV was 10 years old, so it was a "whole house" present. I do think Apple should lower the rate for which they take a percentage of money (videos) as the ATV2/3/4 is just a conduit. I made sure the Smart TV would do 4K60p HDR, so I think I'll be fine with their continued squabbles. On a side note: Amazon Prime returns are being quite strict this year, so order carefully or get stuck with re-stocking fees (even on amazon sold, shipped, and warrantied) items...

 

[mw360]

OK... I am officially confused. This app makes zero sense. Not the idea - a shopping app could be good - but the implementation. I'm going to make my Amazon purchases from the TV? Isn't that an "in app purchase" subject to Apple's 30% cut? How is Amazon making this work while ignoring the Prime Video market?

Apple's cut only applies to digital goods consumed on the device. They don't get a cut from your pizza orders, Uber rides, eBay wins, or anything else.

Amazon makes a tiny profit. So tiny, that they don't want to pay Apple's cut on anything. So they're happy to make a physical goods app, but not a digital one.

Sure, they make an iPhone app for Kindle and Prime Video but you can't buy anything through those and they get abusive reviews from people who don't understand why. With Apple TV though, they don't have to take those terms. The ATV device is floundering (relatively) amid much cheaper options and apps built in to TVs. Holding back the Prime Video app, and keeping ATV out of the Amazon store has a credible chance of hurting Apple more than Amazon, and a tiny chance that Apple will buckle again on its IAP terms.

 

[brandscill]

Cheers Amazon - video app now?

 

[Menel]

At this point, good riddance to AppleTV. Wouldn't use an AmazonVideo app on AppleTV even if they made it.

Doesn't support UHD, nor HDR. Amazon has quite a library of UHD and HDR titles that would be unsupported. I'll use the app built into my TV.

 

[Keane16]

I sympathise for all those wanting Prime video on the AppleTV, and likewise I'm still waiting for iTunes access on my Amazon FireTV too, maybe they could have some kind of ceasefire and both make everyone happy?
Oh, I'm sorry, I appear to have been typing in my sleep again! Nevermind.

The problem is I expect it with Apple, I know their business model. Everyone at this point should. If I want cross platform I just use an alternative.

Amazon however has the mission statement "Our vision is to be Earth's most customer centric company; to build a place where people can come to find and discover anything they might want to buy online".

Specifically they sell their video service as available "Anywhere, Anytime". So I feel a bit short changed. I can understand them not actually supporting every device out there, but they should be hitting the popular ones with that kind of marketing (Apple TV and Chromecast). AirPlay gets me by in the interim.

Past reporting has shown that the app is likely ready to go and it's a revenue split issue holding it up. Hopefully it gets sorted soon as there are a number of Amazon exclusives that I enjoy.

 

[spacemnspiff]

No Prime Video app, I will continue to ask for a handout of my Prime subscription, well not quite a handout but close.

https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...nd-of-prime-membership.2018243/#post-23991530

 

[nightowl]

Can you buy FireTV's at the Apple Store? Amazon music and/or video? Amazon never carried the ATV4, so that comparison doesn't really apply.

That's a fair enough comparison, with one exception. Amazon is promoting their prime video service as a competitor to Netflix. If they really want comparison to Netflix, they need to be on the devices. I don't use Amazon Music so that's not an issue for me (likewise I don't purchase movies from Amazon either, so non-prime isn't a problem for me), and I don't like Amazon hardware, so whether the Apple services are available there isn't an issue for me, either.

Amazon has a decent selection of movies and TV shows in Prime, but is easily replaceable by Hulu, Epix, or other services. It's not essential, but is convenient if it were on the Apple TV.

 

[npmacuser5]

My und

That's a fair enough comparison, with one exception. Amazon is promoting their prime video service as a competitor to Netflix. If they really want comparison to Netflix, they need to be on the devices. I don't use Amazon Music so that's not an issue for me (likewise I don't purchase movies from Amazon either, so non-prime isn't a problem for me), and I don't like Amazon hardware, so whether the Apple services are available there isn't an issue for me, either.

Amazon has a decent selection of movies and TV shows in Prime, but is easily replaceable by Hulu, Epix, or other services. It's not essential, but is convenient if it were on the Apple TV.

Amazon's Prime offers a suite of intergrated products that eventually drive their sales. The way Apple does business on the Apple TV disrupts that process. Apple chose to be very short sighted with the Apple TV (hobby). Results, forced others to develop their own streaming devices. Amazon now has a greater market share in streaming devices then Apple. All about business, Apple made their choices as did Amazon. We the consumers need to make ours.

 

[TheHowes]

I have been waiting for a Prime Video app since MacRumors made a post about it last year...

Keep waiting. Amazon is happy to sell its products on Apple Devices but as long as Apple wants a ~30% cut of in-app media purchases then Amazon won't bother.

That actually is the reason why you don't see rent/buy options except from iTunes. You can subscribe to services but not purchase/rent media itself.

 

[countryside]

Keep waiting. Amazon is happy to sell its products on Apple Devices but as long as Apple wants a ~30% cut of in-app media purchases then Amazon won't bother.

That actually is the reason why you don't see rent/buy options except for iTunes. You can subscribe to services but not purchase/rent media itself.

Ah, thanks for this. That explains why I cannot buy videos on the Amazon Video iOS app... Though, why can we buy movies, tv shows, music, and clothing from the Amazon iOS app? Do they have a special deal?

 

[benjitek]

...That's a fair enough comparison, with one exception. Amazon is promoting their prime video service as a competitor to Netflix...

Actually, they're not at all promoting it that way. It's promoted as a component of a comprehensive Prime membership, Netflix isn't mentioned at all in their promotional materials.

​

 

[sinsin07]

Ah, thanks for this. That explains why I cannot buy videos on the Amazon Video iOS app... Though, why can we buy movies, tv shows, music, and clothing from the Amazon iOS app? Do they have a special deal?

Post 55 above may have the answer to your question.

 

[countryside]

Post 55 above may have the answer to your question.

But, they do sell digital goods on the iOS app... Right?

 

[sinsin07]

please ignore.

 

[JRobinsonJr]

Apple's cut only applies to digital goods consumed on the device. They don't get a cut from your pizza orders, Uber rides, eBay wins, or anything else.

Amazon makes a tiny profit. So tiny, that they don't want to pay Apple's cut on anything. So they're happy to make a physical goods app, but not a digital one.

Sure, they make an iPhone app for Kindle and Prime Video but you can't buy anything through those and they get abusive reviews from people who don't understand why. With Apple TV though, they don't have to take those terms. The ATV device is floundering (relatively) amid much cheaper options and apps built in to TVs. Holding back the Prime Video app, and keeping ATV out of the Amazon store has a credible chance of hurting Apple more than Amazon, and a tiny chance that Apple will buckle again on its IAP terms.

Thanks for the clarification! Didn't realize there was a distinction in what translations were subject to the Apple cut.

 

[mw360]

If you mean can you use the Amazon iOS app [not Amazon Prime Video] then yes you can.
I have order a digital copy of a book from my iPad on the Amazon app.
According to the poster of post 55, Apple doesn't get a cut of that.

How did you do this? When I look in the iOS Amazon app, ebooks are listed but cannot be purchased.

 

[sinsin07]

How did you do this? When I look in the iOS Amazon app, ebooks are listed but cannot be purchased.

You're absolutely right.
I just checked and can't do it in the app.
I must of used the website on the iPad.
I went and deleted my post.
I apologize for the mistake.