Less than a week ago, Amazon announced plans to further unify our lives, entertainment, and cultural experiences by boldly going into a medium it hasn’t before: the small screen. Yes, with a recognized and wildly popular platform—the company’s innovative Kindle tablet—already streaming video to millions of faithful denizens, Amazon is seeking to maintain this success while upping the coziness quotient. Through a set-top box that provides widespread television, web, and mobile integration, The “Kindle TV” (as it’s been dubbed by certain press outlets) could revolutionize comfort and convenience.
The company obviously stands to benefit greatly from horizontal expansion. Between their streaming software Amazon Prime gaining rights to hit shows, the production of their own television pilots and a growing market for apps, Amazon could develop a media strong hold. Such a prospect could challenge competing multimedia set-tops Roku and Apple TV, as well as broader devices from Playstation and Xbox. Given their potential market permeation, they may not even have to reach out to competing video streaming services Netflix, Hulu or YouTube to gain any clout.
Is this overstatement? Theoretically, no. With a built-in membership base and Amazon.com (the eighth most popular website) to convince and convert consumers in a trusted environment, momentum and enthusiasm seem inevitable. Imagine finding exactly what you’ve been shopping for, streaming your favorite videos, and organizing your time with convenient apps all from the comfort of your living room couch. Who would say no to that? You could even control it with your Kindle, providing a potent sales double whammy for the home shopping behemoth. Home control through your TV, tablet, or other future mobile developments wouldn’t be that much harder to accomplish, letting you turn on the heater or unlock the doors without needing to get up.
Of course, this is almost all conjecture, and we can’t quite ascertain what Amazon intends from our current vantage—only people working on the set-top project know that. But with participants who have developed impressive systems for Cisco, Apple and TiVo in the past, it seems Amazon could develop another technological game-changer like the Kindle. Only time will tell.
