YouTube is now blocked on Amazon’s Fire TV stick as well as its Echo Show smart speaker and display, as the conflict between the two firms escalates.
On New Year’s Day 2018, Google removed access to YouTube via the Amazon Fire TV smart gadget, following on from its move to block its video service from the Echo Show several months earlier.
Google had given users plenty of time to prepare for such a move, having stated in no uncertain terms in December that it will continue to block access to YouTube through Amazon devices due to the lack of cooperation from Amazon to strike a business deal in terms of offering Google smart home products in its online shop.
“We’ve been trying to reach agreement with Amazon to give consumers access to each other’s products and services. But Amazon doesn’t carry Google products like Chromecast and Google Home, doesn’t make Prime Video available for Google Cast users, and last month stopped selling some of Nest’s latest products,” Google said in a statement.
“Given this lack of reciprocity, we are no longer supporting YouTube on Echo Show and Fire TV. We hope we can reach an agreement to resolve these issues soon.”
Such an agreement may take some time to hash-out as Amazon responded to Google’s statement by directing its customers to access YouTube on Amazon devices through the a web view rather than through apps.
“Google is setting a disappointing precedent by selectively blocking customer access to an open website. We hope to resolve this with Google as soon as possible,” said Amazon.
Unfortunately, this clash means the people who have brought Amazon Echo Show and Fire TV devices end up bearing the brunt of the Amazon and Google spat.
There’s a good chance that the situation could be resolved quickly, but it shows that Amazon is willing to use its online retail clout to push its agenda while Google will use YouTube as leverage over semi-rival tech firms that won’t play nice with it.
Related: Google vs Amazon smart speakers
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
