Amazon Offers Developer Select Status to Some Apps

If you have a business app available through the Amazon marketplace, there’s a new way to get it noticed. Amazon recently announced a Developer Select program that will offer preferential treatment to those meeting what seem to be fairly minimal standards.

You’ll find a brief overview of the new program in this video:

Here’s what’s involved:

  • Apps must be compatible with all designated Amazon devices.
  • These devices currently include Kindle Fire, Kindle Fire HD, Kindle Fire HD 8.9-inch, and Kindle Fire HD 8.9-inch 4G.
  • As of Jan. 1, 2014, they must also be compatible with the recently announced Kindle Fire HD, Kindle Fire HDX and Kindle Fire HDX 8.9-inch.
  • Apps must render in native high definition on all these devices at full screen without distortion, stretching or pixelation and must have high definition screenshots to go with them.
  • They must use Amazon In-App Purchase API if they allow in-app purchasing and Amazon Mobile Ads API if the app displays ads.
  • There are a number of additional requirements if your app is a game.

Once you sign up for the program, there are a number of benefits that will put your app ahead of the rest. Here are some of the basics:

  • 500,000 free mobile ad impressions on Amazon’s Mobile Ad Network.
  • Merchandising in a dedicated section of the Amazon app store.
  • Consideration for advertising on Kindle Fire.
  • Customers who buy your app or an in-app purchase get 30 percent of the purchasing price in Amazon coins, the retailers new virtual currency, and first-time buyers get 250 extra bonus coins.
  • 25 percent back on the cost of Amazon Web Services up to $500 a year to help you scale your business.

Getting apps noticed can be harder than some first-time publishers realize. Fortunately, most of the requirements for participation in the program seem as if they would make for a stronger app offering anyway.

Image: Amazon