Like we don’t already have enough mobile app stores, Amazon decided to join the race and launch its own service with a focus on the Android platform.
Unlike the vanilla Android Market, Amazon will curate its store a la Apple, though in a more liberal fashion. Moreover, the online retailer won’t allow developers to set their own prices – there will be an option to set a “List Price,” but Amazon on its end will determine the pricing. If they decide to steeply discount the app or even offer it for free, developers are guaranteed to get 20% of the List Price. In a default scenario, developers get an “industry standard” 70% of the price.
Yup, it sounds kinda strange, but what do we know. I’m confident this won’t bother many developers considering the sheer volume of Amazon’s user base. If you want to reach that many customers, something’s gotta give.
We’re eager to see whether Amazon can compete with the default option. In the meantime, developers can sign-up and submit their apps from this page.
[Via: TechCrunch]