14 DAY TRIAL // This week, the rumor that Amazon is preparing to launch a home console resurfaced, with a number of executives from gaming publishers quoted as saying that the device is set to launch in 2014, run a version of Android and retail for less than 300 dollars or Euro.
The company has not offered any official reaction to the rumors, but similar information also appeared last year and the promised device failed to materialize.
The big question is: if the Amazon home console is real, does it have a chance against the already launched Xbox One from Microsoft, Wii U from Nintendo and PlayStation 4 from Sony?
I think that the retail giant has a big chance of selling millions of its devices and that it can turn them into big revenue sources.
Amazon might even revolutionize gaming, in a manner similar to how the Kindle redefined the way people read books and managed to survive the rise of more powerful tablets and smartphones.
The company has a huge advantage: it owns a big library of content that can be easily delivered to gamers and has a lot of cloud computing capacity that can be used to store information and to increase local performance.
The Amazon console does not need to be more powerful than the Xbox One or the PlayStation 4 or more family friendly than the Wii U.
It only needs to be relatively cheap and constantly promoted on the official site of the company.
It would also benefit if it were tied in some interesting way to the Prime service from Amazon or if it came pre-loaded with some movies, TV shows or music.
Traditional gamers need not be worried because a potential Amazon console will not replace current hardware, it will simply open up a new type of market that will have a life of its own.