Why Developers Will Decide the Fate of Google Chromecast
Less than one week after the much-ballyhooed release of Google Chromecast, the thirty-five dollar wunderkind USB TV streaming device, people are already starting to question its usefulness or even its need for existence. Everyone loves the price, but with Chromecast’s glaring limitations, compared to its not-that-much-pricier competition, this market could prove to be a tough road to hoe for Google.
The critics' main complaint is that the device can currently only stream from four different content providers: Netflix, YouTube, Google Music, and Google TV and Movies. But this is where Google is counting on software developers to make the product great. Along with the product’s release, Google is also “encouraging third-party developers to build, or augment their own apps for Chromecast.” The SDK and API can be found here.
Google is counting on developers to quickly get to work to beef up Chromecast’s abilities. Even though the device sold out on the very first day it hit the shelves, much-followed reviewers like CNET were quick to label Chromecast as “a daringly priced streamer that doesn’t do much.” Ouch.
Even with the price-point appeal of Chromecast, it’s still up in the air if developers will actually race to begin creating apps for it. Some feel Chromecast’s shortcomings go further than just a current lack of content channels. Adrian Covert at CNNMoney reports:
While you can stream certain types of locally stored media files on your laptop by dropping it in a Chrome tab and broadcasting that tab, the device isn't otherwise designed for the easy playback of local media. Nor can it push content from other apps on your phone or tablet unless they have already built in support for Chromecast.
Covert goes on to note that Chromecast seems to create a conflict of interests with Google TV, especially once the two are paired together, which Google has said is coming in the future. Covert points out:
But if Chromecast does attract tons of third-party support from streaming services and proves commercially successful, there's almost no incentive for those services to develop a Google TV-specific app. They'll just tweak their existing mobile app to work with Chromecast.
Are consumers likely to have buyers’ remorse even after spending “only” thirty-five dollars? Will developers race to get their apps on the device early or will they wait to see just how much longevity Chromecast actually has?
