Amazon Wants to Bring Augmented Reality to the Streaming Services Game 

With its recently-published patent for AR smart glasses, the Internet giant introduces a new, disruptive element to watching video

There no doubt as to the potential for augmented reality to change how we interact with our future world. Just ask Facebook, Google and Microsoft. With its promising application to video games and other in-real-time experiences, its no wonder the biggest tech players in the field are eager to explore AR possibilities. And, as revealed by its new patent for augmented reality glasses, it looks like Amazon wants to take a crack at it as well, albeit with a different goal in mind from the rest.

According to the patent, Amazon glasses look to specifically enhance the experience of streaming video. Mentioning one of the biggest issues with the �experience with portable devices, like tablet devices, is the lack of ability [for consumers] to immerse themselves in a tablet experience, such as watching a movie on an airplane,� the glasses look to enrich content in a way no other streaming service currently does. They also �do not allow a user to immerse in the experience,� implying that if you�re watching video with them on, they won�t change your entire environment so that it feels as if you �jumped in� to the show (which is one form of augmented reality). Rather, the augmented reality experience only appears when you�re watching the screen in front of you.

On top of this, Amazon also purports a more comfortable version of augmented reality as well, citing the headsets of other augmented reality devices as �usually heavy, expensive and uncomfortable to use for long periods of time.� While Google Glass may not fall in with that crowd, it is true that simple glasses versus large headsets lend themselves to a more casual and pleasurable wearing experience, one which would be ideal if you were watching video.

The larger implication here is that Amazon glasses would be changing the landscape of video streaming by adding augmented reality to the mix. If the glasses catch on and the majority of Amazon Video new, original content require the device for the full experience, the online giant could look to compete with Netflix and Hulu, the current dominators in the streaming service game. At the moment, especially with so much interest in the sphere as of late, the idea shows promise. But while Amazon glasses might change how we experience content, the true question remains as to whether they�ll actually increase our enjoyment of it.

Our collective love for watching video will no doubt remain constant, and if augmented reality turns out to be the much-needed element to complement our at-home entertainment set-ups, then it absolutely worth bringing on.