Amazon to Release 'Firetube' Video Streaming Device Before the Holidays?

Amazon is reportedly planning to launch a video streaming set-top box before the holiday season, reports the WSJ.

The set-top box, which would pit the online retailer against a host of established rivals, is a small device that resembles a Roku Inc. player and is similarly styled as a platform to run apps and content from a variety of sources, these people said. It would also serve as a delivery vehicle for Amazon's existing streaming video service—available as part of its Prime membership—which competes with Netflix Inc. and has been expanding lately.

Notably, this morning Seth Weintraub discovered that the company just filed for a 'Firetube' trademark in the U.S. and Canada. The name sounds like it would be a good candidate for the rumored set-top box.


Amazon has allegedly approached media app developers in the past few weeks to seek partnerships for the device. Some developers have been given a deadline of mid-October to submit apps that run on the new device.

Apple has been pushing more content to its Apple TV device of late and is rumored to be updating its hardware in the near future.

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