Amazon has made their Prime video app in the Google Play Store available to US users for the first time. Before this change, the app was only available to non-US users and US customers had to sideload the Amazon Underground app to watch Amazon Video on Android phones and tablets. This change now allows all Android users to easily install the app from the official Google Play Store.
While the Amazon Prime Video app is now available to more Google Play users, the app is unfortunately not yet available to all Android TV devices. Due to a special arrangement between Amazon and NVIDIA, the Shield TV is the only Android TV device that currently has access to an Amazon Video app. That’s because NVIDIA installs the app on their streaming box themselves through an OS software update, instead of relying on the Google Play Store.
The Amazon Video app for Android phones and tablets notably still does not have support for Chromecast. What it does have, however, is support for Amazon Fling which allows you to instantly start watching content on the Fire TV by tapping a button in the app. This makes the app a great alternative way to find something to watch through the Fire TV.
Apple revealed earlier this year that the Apple TV would also gain an Amazon Video app later this year. Once that app arrives, it leaves Android TV as the main platform without access to Amazon’s content.
Amazon famously took a stance against both Apple and Google by banning sale of the Apple TV, Nexus Player, and Chromecast from Amazon.com and not releasing apps for either platform. The reason for the ban is believed to be Amazon’s objection with Apple and Google taking a cut of all digital purchases made within apps in their respective appstores. This is why, to this day, you still cannot purchase any content through Amazon Video apps in the Google Play Store or iTunes App Store. You can only watch Prime Video content or content you already own.
Since Amazon has announced the end of their Underground appstore, which was the main way they wanted Android users to access Amazon Video, it makes sense they’re now allowing all users to download their Amazon Prime Video app from the Google Play Store. Hopefully, the arrival of Amazon Video on the Shield TV, the impending release on Apple TV, and this Google Play expansion means all of these companies are finally playing nice with one another for the benefit of customers. Well, one can at least dream.
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Good sign.
However, I wish they’d fix their atrocious cross app login too. Each Amazon app should have independent credentials. If you are not the main prime holder and a family prime member, you cannot fling to firetvs that are not activated to other family prime members within the same new work. You also can’t download. Logging into the main prime account in video signs you out of any other Amazon app (like shopping, photos) and signs you in under the same account as the video app. WTF. I was hoping to be able to have seperate playlists to fling.
its always been super easy to side load Prime Video on android phones and tablets.
Wake me when we can install Prime Video on Android TV. Maybe then I’ll pull the Nexus Player and Xiaomi Mi Box out of cold storage.
True. I would be happy if it just could be Google casted. It would be nice if this was the first step toward that feature since now it should have support for Google services. Definitely not holding my breath.
I reinstalled (side loaded) most recent apk on my Nexus Player and no change yet. It looks perfectly normal ……….. until you try to play anything. :) Maybe one day it will work, though to be honest it won’t work as well as it does on fire TV and Roku. It would be nice, though.