StrikerObi
Member
The App Store is not open.
It's open enough. Apple needs to approve apps, but anybody can submit an app for approval. That is not the case with AppleTV. Apple works hand-in-hand with those developers to build custom apps for AppleTV. Though this may be opening up somewhat, very very slowly.
Putting Amazon Prime video does not mean they need to support buying individual content--they don't allow them to sell Amazon video or books on their App Store apps, for instance.
Apple does allow for the sale of such things via app store apps, they just require a cut of the profits, which is why Amazon dropped their support for it in their apps. The same is true of AppleTV. Apple gets a cut of subscriptions that are generated through AppleTV. It's rumored that negotiations over this "finders fee" is why it took so long for Hulu to finally make it to AppleTV. You can subscribe to Hulu via AppleTV, and if you do you are billed via your iTunes account, not a separate Hulu account (though if you have one of those, you can of course still log in to it via AppleTV). Even without a purchase/rental option, Apple would almost certainly try to strong-arm Amazon into a similar finders fee deal (ie - they would not allow the app unless Amazon put a "subscribe to prime" option in it, which Apple would then take a cut of). While Hulu may have eventually buckled due to their need to support the device, I don't believe Amazon would ever do so. They will sit pretty with AirPlay support via the more open iPad/iPhone app environment.
Amazon is in direct competition with Hulu and Netflix over content deals (look at how they all bid for Viacom content, for instance).
Sure but that doesn't affect Apple. Let them fight among themselves.