Apple TV is spreading its virtual wings further
TIM COOK seems to be pulling a few bricks out of Apple’s walled garden, as the Apple TV app has launched on Amazon Fire TV devices.
Nope, hell hasn’t frozen over – it’s just a bit nippy in Blighty – Apple TV is simply no longer limited to iThing or Apple Thing gadgets.
Apple tends to keep everything it does fairly locked down in its product and software ecosystems; for example, it took ages before it allowed the HomePod to work with Spotify and not just Apple Music.
But the company has already brought Apple TV to Samsung TVs and support for other tellies is also in the works. Compatability with Roku streaming devices was also added into the mix of hardware on which Apple TV can be streamed earlier this month, so it makes sense that Amazon’s Fire TV gadgets should be integrated into the wider Apple TV ecosystem.
Amazon Fire TV devices, including the Fire TV Stick 4K, the Fire TV basic Edition and the second-gen Fire TV Stick now have access to the Apple TV app.
This is hardly a coincidence, as the Apple TV+ streaming service is set to launch on 14 November, so having the Apple TV app on as many devices as possible is one way to get more people onto the streaming service, thus lining Apple’s already massively deep pockets.
With the Amazon Fire gadgets, one will still need to access, buy and view Apple TV content through that app; there’s no retrofitted integration with non-Apple gadgets.
Still, at least Apple has swallowed its pride and allowed Apple TV onto other devices. If only it could do that a little more; making the Apple Watch play well with an Android phone would be a good place to start in our opinion. µ