The Possibilities of Amazon Fire TV

So, Amazon Fire TV was announced last week, and while it wasn’t the true entry into the gaming console market I hoped it would be, I am still excited about the possibilities that it brings.

For starters, the fact there is a dedicated controller available from day one is a big plus, and a great sign for any potentially interested developers. It opens the door for a variety of older games that require a controller to be made available, as well as providing a roadmap for future games. You can also use any bluetooth controller with the Fire TV, which is huge.

Secondly, the tablet integration with Kindle Fire HDX is interesting, and already being shown of with Sev Zero, the game that comes with the controller. Lots of possibilities there in the future.

What I would love to see though, is Amazon really leverage their partnerships with publishers to get their big chunks of their back libraries on the Fire TV. They mentioned Disney, Gameloft, EA, Sega, Ubisoft and Double Fine already, so there is a lot of potential there.

And that’s really what the Amazon Fire TV is all about right now–potential. With Amazon’s ecosystem, and a growing in-house development studio, Amazon could carve out a nice niche in the micro console market.

This is also a great shot across the bow to Apple, whose fans have been begging them to get into the micro console space for some time.