Amazon's Streaming Music Service Goes Big Screen With Debut Of Cloud Player For iPad
Only a couple of weeks after announcing Amazon Cloud Player integration with Ford SYNC's AppLink platform, the company has today updated its iOS application with native support for the Apple iPad.
Context & Ripple Effects
Amazon had already moved Cloud Player beyond the browser: it gained iOS-device access in 2011, reached Sonos and other devices in 2012, and was added to Roku and Samsung smart TVs. The Ford SYNC AppLink integration announced in February 2013 extended that distribution into cars.
Native iPad support fills a prominent gap in that device-by-device rollout, making Amazon’s music service more usable on a larger-screen Apple device while Amazon builds presence across home, mobile, and vehicle endpoints.
First-order effects
- iPad owners get a native Cloud Player interface, giving Amazon a dedicated tablet touchpoint alongside its existing iOS access.
- Amazon can present Cloud Player as a service available across Apple tablets, connected TVs, Sonos hardware, and Ford SYNC-enabled vehicles.
Second-order effects
- Amazon’s device partners gain a more consistent Cloud Player ecosystem to offer users, raising the value of integrations that let listening continue across screens and locations.
- The competitive comparison for Cloud Player shifts away from a single-device music utility toward the breadth and quality of its supported endpoints.
Third-order effects
- If Amazon continues adding native clients and integrations, streaming-music competition will increasingly reward services that control the listening experience across consumer-device categories rather than on one operating system.
The trend: Cloud Player is part of Amazon’s broader push to distribute a single media service across mobile, home-entertainment, audio, and in-car platforms.