YouTube won't work on the Amazon Echo Show device anymore. Google has pulled its video service from the online retailer's Echo Show platform, leaving owners with no access to the world's largest video community.
If asked to play a YouTube video, the Echo Show fails and simply says, "Currently, Google is not supporting YouTube on Echo Show."
Amazon Echo No Show
Amazon has commented on the blocking, telling The Verge that Google pulled YouTube off its device without any explanation, reason, or notification to users. It was "disappointing," Amazon said, arguing that it hurts both companies' customers.
For the uninitiated, the Echo Show is Amazon's smart speaker that, unlike standard Echo devices, has a screen. This means users can do plenty of stuff with it that they wouldn't be able to do otherwise on non-screen Echo speakers such as Tap or Dot. Taking away YouTube is a serious backward step for the Echo Show, which boasts video as one of its main selling points.
Amazon's stern comments make it seem like this was a conscious decision on Google's part, but the company has now explained why it blocked YouTube on the Echo Show:
"Amazon's implementation of YouTube on the Echo Show violates our terms of service, creating a broken user experience."
For now, Google is saying it hopes to reach an agreement with Amazon to resolve the issues soon. Perhaps Google wants a more integrated YouTube experience on Amazon's device, complete with subscriptions, autoplay, and more.
It makes more sense when one considers past evidence: Google has a history of being very meticulous about how YouTube is displayed on other devices. In 2013, it went as far as to block the YouTube app on Windows Phone for violating its terms of use. Microsoft was forced to use a web player version instead as a result.
Google And Amazon's Conflict Escalates
Alternatively, this might just be Google and Amazon fighting to keep its services exclusive. Google Home, the company's own smart speaker, doesn't have a screen, but users can command it to cast YouTube video onto a nearby Chromecast, which is sort of the same thing. Google Home can even play music from YouTube, which is pretty neat.
But totally pulling YouTube away from a service seems like such a drastic move. But who can blame Google? After all, Amazon still refuses to sell the Chromecast on its online store. That's not to imply that Google just acted out against Amazon in revenge, but it would be foolish to think this didn't have something to do with Google's decision.
