What we think of this fortnight’s top tech news stories and rumours,
and how they affect you
Discussweb news atwww.facebook.com/webusermagazine 1 - 14 May 2019^9Need to KnowYouTube Kids apps will also
land on the Fire TV platform.What dowethink?
It’s clear that both Amazon
and Google were anglin g to
widen their respective shares
of th e TV-streaming market.
Frustratingly, they did so by
forcing custom ers to not only
shell out for multiple smartunlessyou actively remove it.What dowethink?
It’s ironic that Chrome is
facing such a browser ballot,
when the original idea came
from a similar ruling against
Microsoft and Internet
Explorer. It’s unclear how
successful that original
ballot was; the desktop
browser market is no longer
dominated by Microsoft, but
that’s more to do with the
popu larity of Chrome than
any efforts from the EU.
Google’s ballot is a bit
differen t to Microsoft’s,
though similar in that IE was
still the default browser for
Windows computers, and
wasn’t automatically deleted
when a new one wasAmazon Prime Video comes to ChromecastGoogle forced to offer Androidusers a choice of browsersTV dongles,
but to faff about
switchin g between
platforms to play
the content they’d
already paid for.
It’s ridiculous for
companies that
make billions in
revenue to force
this uponTV
streaming fans,
and both Amazon
and Google are lucky to
have av oided the wrath of
consumers and regulators
for as long asthey have.
Perh aps this development
could lead to Amazon
lifting its ban on other
competing Google
products, such as the
Home smart speakers.instal led. While this new
ballot isn’t likely to budge
Chrome from Android
dominance, it is a reminder
to mobile users that there
are plenty of excellent
alternativ es to Google’s
browser out there,
including Firefox, Brave
and Opera.What happened?
For years, Amazon and
Google have battled for
supremacy in the
streaming arena, refusing
to work with each other’s
services. This is why the
YouTube app isn’t available
on the Fire TV platform,
and you can’t stream Prime
Video to Google’s
Chromecast TV dongle.
However, this impasse is
about to end. Within the
next few months, Amazon’s
Fire TV devices will get the
official YouTube app, whil e
the Prime Video appfor
Andr oid will finally add
Chromecast suppor t.How will it affectyou?
If you have a Chromecast
and a Prime Video accountWhat happened?
Google revealed the
browser ballot screen it wi ll
show Euro peanusers as
part of an antitrust ruling
where it was fined $5bn
(£3.85bn) by EU regulators
for using Andr oid to
promote Chrome. The
proposed design of th e
screen has been disp uted
by rival browser developers
who brought the case to
the EU, including lobby
group FairSearch, so it
could be subject to change.
Indeed, Google said the
ballot was likely to be
upda ted over ti me, based
on user feedback.How will it affectyou?
The browser ballot will not- which is included
with an Amazon
Prime subscription - you’ll have so far
been unable to
watch movies and
TV shows from the
latter via Google’s
dongle. That meant
either shelling out
for a Fire TV stick or
another smart-TV
device suppor ted by
Amazon.
Amazon and Google have
yet to reveal a specific date
for the launch of th e apps on
their respective platforms,
but once releas ed, you’ll
finally be able to watch
YouTube videos on your Fire
TV device, or Prime Video on
your Chromecast. Later in
the year, the YouTube TV and
only be shown on new
Andr oid phones, it wi ll also
be displayed on al l other
Andr oid devices used in
Euro pe. The ballot screen will
pop up after an upda te
instal ls the system and
Google Play is opened,
showing four randomly
chosen alternativ es to
Google’s own browser and
search bar. The screen allows
you to immediately instal l a
new browser and change
your default search engine.
If you’re happy using
Chrome as a browser and
Google for search, you don’t
needto make any change s
because these will remain the
default options. If you opt for
a differen t browser, you’ll still
have Chrome on your device