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People who bought Angry Birds also bought Fruit Ninja? Amazon is set to apply its recommendations technology to the world of Android apps, with the launch of its dedicated Amazon Appstore for Android. The new store is set to go live this month, with mobile advertising network Millennial Media letting the cat out of the bag in a tweet yesterday.
“Launching this month! Amazon Appstore for #Android — learn more here,” said the tweet, pointing people to a blog post on Millennial’s website talking up the potential of Amazon’s store for app developers. On its own developer site, Amazon is more cagey about the launch date, with a FAQ answer simply saying, “We haven’t announced that yet, but we expect to launch later this year.”
The FAQ also explains that the Appstore will offer free and paid apps, that it will work on Android devices running OS 1.6 or higher, and that — boo, hiss — at launch it will only be available in the US. With the example of the Kindle e-reader in mind, though, we’re hoping the UK will be next in line.
Wondering why you should trust a tweet from a mobile ad network you’ve possibly never heard of? It seems Millennial Media is a business partner for Amazon’s new store, judging by the blog post’s mention of “Amazon’s mobile advertising efforts with us to support the Amazon Appstore for Android launch.”
The bigger question is why should you care about Amazon launching a store for Android apps, when your device already has Android Market? Firstly, Amazon’s store will tie into its existing 1-Click payment system, so it’ll be quick to buy apps using whatever card you’ve registered on the website.
Second, it looks like the Amazon Appstore will have some features still lacking from Android Market. For example, developers are being encouraged to include videos of their apps in action when submitting them for approval.
Most important, though, could be the way Amazon’s store will use recommendations, based on your purchase history. So, in the same way it thinks your purchase of the new Beady Eye album marks you out as a potential Status Quo fan (we jest), Amazon will be able to recommend Android apps and games based on your buying history too. And then email you about them every single day.
