It was just recently that Amazon unveiled the Fire TV. This is essentially Amazon’s take on the set top box and is a device that has long been rumored to be in the works (we’re still waiting for Amazon’s smartphone!). It has taken the Kindle and its ebooks a while to see a release around the world namely due to copyright restrictions and whatnot, and we can only imagine the same applies to the Fire TV and its video content.
Speaking to the folks at CVG, it seems that Amazon is keeping relatively mum on the possibility as to whether or not the Fire TV will be seeing a release outside of the US. According to an Amazon representative, they were quoted as saying, “Fire TV is not available outside the US at this time and we’re not able to speculate on future plans.”
This seems to contradict Amazon’s earlier statement which vaguely hinted at the possibility that the Fire TV could see a global release. Of course neither statement confirms or denies a global release, so it is possible that this rep is being extra cautious without giving the rest of the world too much hope while Amazon works out the details.
Assuming Amazon hopes to kick the Fire TV off in a big way, it will definitely need to step outside the US market, much like what Apple has done with the Apple TV, and conquer international markets to gain more customers.
Hopefully Amazon won’t take too long unlike what they did with the Kindle Fire tablet. The device was released in the US in 2011 and it was only in the later part of 2012 that it eventually made its way into other markets like Europe.