According to agreements, Google can revoke the Android license from manufacturers if they decide to also make devices with Android forks such as Amazon Fire TV. As a result, Amazon’s operating system would only be found on few TVs.
Protocol reports this on the basis of conversations with anonymous sources within companies. Manufacturers who use Google Android TV or make Android smartphones with Google apps must agree to the condition that they do not release other equipment with Android forks. If they do, Google could revoke the license and the companies would lose access to the Play Store and Google apps.
In practice, this means that major manufacturers such as Samsung, LG and Sony, which make both TVs and smartphones, cannot release TVs with Amazon’s Fire TV operating system. The same goes for TV manufacturers that don’t make smartphones, but do use Google Android TV. Google has not responded to Protocol’s story and the company has not responded to questions about content to The Verge.
The agreements are laid down in the Android Compatibility Commitment according to Protocol. That’s a set of rules that companies must adhere to when using Android with Google apps. The exact terms and conditions are not public. Those rules would be there to ensure apps work on as many Android devices as possible, but in doing so they also block the ability for manufacturers to create hardware with Android forks that aren’t compatible with the Google version, such as Fire TV OS.
Amazon sells individual sticks, set-top boxes, and TVs with Fire TV OS. Currently, only Toshiba, Grundig and Insignia TVs are on sale with the operating system. Those manufacturers don’t make other devices with Android and Google apps.
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