Happy New Year and welcome to 2014!

Perhaps the biggest sleeper hit of 2013 was Google's Chromecast. Launched cautiously and with little fanfare, momentum built in Q4 with a slew of new apps integrating the 'casting' feature. Since its launch, it has been the top-selling electronics item on Amazon. Not surprisingly, Google has big plans for Chromecast in 2014, including the debut of its software development kit (SDK) along with an aggressive  international expansion, both certain to broaden consumer adoption.

Chromecast's big difference vs. all other connected TV devices is that it is almost 100% dependent on mobile devices in order to deliver its full value proposition to consumers (of course Chromecast would still work if you only had a computer using the Chrome browser, but it would far less appealing). In other words, Chromecast isn't just another connected TV device for viewing Netflix, Hulu and other OTT content on the TV, rather, it's more of a platform for bringing mobile's capabilities into the living room.

In short, Google is betting that mobile is going to be increasingly central in people's lives going forward and that as such, mobile has a huge opportunity to assert itself in the living room. I agree with both of these assumptions, and this is why Chromecast is potentially such a game-changer.

The power of mobile in the living room means that things like content discovery, interactivity, social/communications, advertising and commerce can all be improved vs. what TV can currently deliver.  Of course, we're already seeing a significant level of innovation in all of these areas on mobile devices themselves. But the promise of Chromecast (and no doubt other devices like it that will follow) is that they extend the experience into the living room, to the big TV.

Rather than relying on the limited (and variable) processing power available on pay-TV's set-top boxes or other connected TV devices, Chromecast leverages the plentiful processing power and simple interfaces of today's tablets and smartphones. Assuming that Google creates a robust SDK for Chromecast that truly enables developers to create compelling apps and features that can be integrated with the TV, Chromecast would be a very significant enabling platform.

In the grand scheme of things, it's still the bottom of the first inning in terms of Chromecast's ultimate impact. And given the wariness content providers have about Google, there are still plenty of challenges for Chromecast. But step back for a moment and think about how powerful mobile in the living room would be, and the central role that enabling technology would play. This is the bigger opportunity for Chromecast and Google.

Admittedly, some of this still feels a bit vague and ambiguous, but in 2014, I predict clever developers will start showing us the possibilities. It's going to be very exciting.