This week Amazon launched a new program that will allow game-developers and application developers the ability to include ‘in-app purchases’ using Amazon developed APIs. 
 
This is an important step within Amazon’s own internal structuring of their mobile application store. Although Amazon itself is one of the few content distributers that has it’s own mobile application store (iTunes and Google Play being the largest) the ability to offer these in-game purchases was a large disadvantage for developers using the Amazon App Store service.
 
The Amazon developed APIs will stretch across all major platforms, including ‘PC, Android, browser-based games and Mac’. The inclusion of Mac could be quite an obstacle for Amazon, as more and more titles are forced to use the ‘Mac App Store’ to distribute to Mac customers, it will be interesting to see how Apple deals with developers that want to use the Amazon API to develop their games and applications.
 
The APIs will use Amazon’s current payment structure, something that has long been secure, familiar and easy to use for customers. Using existing Amazon accounts customers can easily use existing payment information without signing up for any new services or entering in any new data.
 
“We’re passionate about making game developers successful, and we’ll continue to build services that make monetization easier and remove undifferentiated heavy lifting from developers,” said Mike Frazzini, Director Amazon Games. “In-App Purchasing for Mac, PC and Web-based games is our latest service that helps game developers grow their business and increase their customer-base. For years, Amazon has focused on making the online shopping experience as frictionless as possible, and we are excited to share this expertise and technology so that game developers can offer customers this same great experience.”

The previous in-game purchases that were available on Amazon’s App Store were limited to Android Applications. The new services will allow both Amazon and the developers that use the APIs a chance to earn more revenue on a larger array of platforms.