Re/code has gotten Amazon’s CEO and founder Jeff Bezos to send them a statement on why his company doesn’t sell the Apple TV or Chromecast. It’s been rumored that by having the company’s Fire TV and TV Stick as the main available media streaming utilities, Amazon could sell more, however that hasn’t resulted in any good news so far and is clearly not what Bezos points out. Here’s his full statement:
[W]hen we sell those devices, we want our player — our Prime Video player — to be on the device, and we want it to be on the device with acceptable business terms,” he said. “You can always get the player on the device. The question is, can you get it on there with acceptable business terms?
Basically what he’s saying is that if Amazon did have their Prime Video service fully available on the Apple TV and/or Chromecast, Apple and Google would both take out commission fees because they each have a policy in which they state they make 30% of profits collected from transactions from each app that users can make purchases on. So, since their service is based on purchasing movies, TV shows, and more, Cupertino and the search giant would each be taking out that large chunk of change, something Amazon doesn’t fly with since they famously operate on razor-thin margins to maximize revenue.
30% might not sound like a lot (and when you think about it, it really isn’t), but to Amazon, it’s like taking their whole paychecks. Bezos wants companies like Apple and Google to negotiate with them to come up with a better deal, however since Apple is already focusing on making their own movie and TV streaming service and Google is directing their attention to things such as YouTube Red and Chromecast all together, it’s unlikely we’ll see some type of workaround or special treatment for Amazon, because as it’s been said before, “If they can do for them, why can’t they do it for others?”
Source: Re/code
Very interesting stuff, and I still don’t really believe it. Amazon Video is on iOS, and that takes a 30% cut. The same goes for Xbox One. You just can’t buy anything on it, only watch stuff you’ve already purchased. The fact that they won’t port that idea to the Apple TV baffles me.