10 ms·
Amazon Coins Launching
- seanalltogether 14y agoIt weird that amazon would move in this direction to split up their customer base onto different forms of currency. Microsoft is rumored to be tearing down their XBox points system so that there is less fragmentation in payment across their product lines.
- jmduke 14y agoBy far the most aggravating aspect of MS Points are that its not a 1:1 conversion rate. I don't think there's anything inherently 'bad' about an internal payment currency (beyond the fact that consumers generally dislike it.)
- Lightning 14y agohttps://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5170855 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5170855 and https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5174832 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5174832
- Jtsummers 14y agoIs it correct to refer to this as a virtual currency? Isn't this just a sort of prepaid debit system like MS and others use in their own markets?
- dholowiski 14y agoThey are just trying to cash in on that other *coin virtual currency that's been in the news so much recently.
- Jtsummers 14y agoAs linked by Lightning this has been in the works for a while now. I don't think bitcoin is their motivation. More likely it's as others pointed out, they get to hold the cash and earn interest/dividends on investments with it until customers spend it. And they can reduce transaction costs because they're handling the transactions, not Paypal/CC/banks.
- MacsHeadroom 14y ago>this has been in the works for a while now How long is a while? Bitcoin is in its 5th year of being a thing.
- Jtsummers 14y agoIf this functioned similarly that'd be a fair statement. This is being called a currency, but it's really the same as MS Points or any other similar prepaid card. Amazon has the benefit of restricting where the outflow is and so can also ensure 30% of what comes in to buy coins is profit[1], and then make earnings off the rest. And given how constrained the outflow is this is hardly a competitor to bitcoin or any other attempt at a virtual currency. It's a lockin attempt and a play for earlier access to capital. It will probably be successful on both fronts. EDIT: [1] Profit is the wrong word, there are other costs involved that will eat away at that 30%. I should have said 30% was guaranteed revenue.
- MacsHeadroom 14y agoI believe the argument was that the 'name' Amazon Coins is meant to capitalize on things like Bitcoin, Litecoin, PPCoin, NameCoin, FreiCoin, DevCoin, etc. The function is clearly something more similar to MS Points.
- UnoriginalGuy 14y agoThis move essentially splits Amazon off from the Play ecosystem. I mean they already had their own store which people would "invest" in, but adding a currency/gift cards/freebies will only increase the lockdown/isolation further. I'll leave it up to the reader to decide if this is a good or bad thing but for me: I am skipping Amazon's ecosystem in the foreseeable future and sticking to a more open alternative (namely the Play store, which works on most Android devices - including Fire tablets).
- fein 14y ago> including Fire tablets With Amazon starting up with their own store, this may soon be a thing of the past.
- random42 14y agoWhy would they do that in immediate future?
- fein 14y agoI highly doubt they would, however as soon as their store gains traction, it makes very little sense for Amazon to support a direct competitor on their own branded devices. I'm not saying its a good or bad thing; it's just how these vendors operate. You don't have itunes on android devices, and you don't have the google play app available on i-devices. You can still use the Play web app on any device, of course.
- NewAccnt 14y agoTechnically, they don't support it. People have just figured out how to side-load it and Amazon hasn't done anything to block it.
- r00fus 14y agoExactly. So perhaps Amazon might begin to block it in the future. I don't really see that happening soon, however. Amazon hasn't built up enough critical mass to ditch the larger Android ecosystem.
- hkmurakami 14y ago>When Amazon Coins launches in May, we will give out tens of millions of dollars in Amazon Coins to customers to spend on Kindle Fire apps, games, or in-app items. For a split second I thought, "is this a new way for Amazon to spend their free cash flow to the point where their profits approach zero?" but then I realized that this is only for digital purchases so they aren't actually spending money per se and the hit to their actual top line will be a small fraction of the total giveaway (esp. since these coins can't be used on kindle books it seems)
- tjbiddle 14y agoIf a consumer purchases something then wouldn't Amazon be losing 70% of that as they have to pay the developer of the app the consumer made the purchase on/for?
- hayksaakian 14y agogiven their history with paying developers that are the app of the day on their store[1], I can see them finding a loophole to avoid paying devs who collect payments with coins. [1] http://blog.shiftyjelly.com/2011/08/02/amazon-app-store-rotten-to-the-core/ http://blog.shiftyjelly.com/2011/08/02/amazon-app-store-rott...
- chrisrhoden 14y agoAs of now, they are claiming they will be paying out exactly the same as if your app was purchased with dollars. It seems like that's a major part of this push - if you want to receive any of these free Amazon dollars, submit to the app store. https://developer.amazon.com/help/faq.html#AmazonCoins https://developer.amazon.com/help/faq.html#AmazonCoins
- hayksaakian 14y agoThe point remains; I still have very little faith in Amazon's android adventures given their shady history.
- obilgic 14y agoAre they trying to capitalize on current Bitcoin hype on the mainstream?
- dmix 14y agoThis isn't a crypto-currency, only a virtual currency with a single vendor. Not quite a BTC competitor in any sense yet.
- gnu8 14y agoIt's not a currency at all, they're prepaid gift cards without the card.
- anigbrowl 14y agoMaybe, and why not? Let's face it, Amazon would coins make a lot more sense for most people than Bitcoin would. There's also the possibility that they're moving to undermine Paypal; Amazon and eBay have been at odds on Capital hill over sales tax policy.
- ihsw 14y agoBitcoin isn't just a currency, it's also a major and reliable international transaction network.
- buro9 14y agoSo I'm trying to work out why? And off the top of my head it's probably combination of: 1) Helps with micropayments for low value in-app purchases 2) Creates a disconnect between the real cost and perceived cost The latter helps Amazon create an artificial incentive that they can use to build their store. For example: Buy something physical off amazon.com and earn 100 free Amazon coins to spend on something digital (implicit: with Amazon).
- Terretta 14y ago> So I'm trying to work out why? Have you checked out the Xbox Marketplace? See "Microsoft Points".
- dmix 14y agoAlso the ability to exchange coins, similar to gift cards.
- buro9 14y agoYup. And conversion of customer behaviour... they could offer Amazon coins as rewards for Marketplace sales knowing that they'll move some customers to future digital offers (I'm thinking the 2nd hand CD, books and DVD markets, but there are others I'm sure).
- nemothekid 14y agoI've seen a lot of transactions where amazon gift cards are accepted if paypal isn't usable as well.
- pavel_lishin 14y agoIt lets you put money into their ecosystem without being able to take it back out. It's a series of infinite gift cards, without the inconvenience of having to print physical gift cards.
- pi18n 14y agoAlso, the earlier they can get money the more it is worth.
- jibbist 14y agoHow can a 'new virtual currency' be US residents only? This is more akin to Disney Dollars, than it is to an actual currency which has controls, an exchange rate, international trade etc.
- wtvanhest 14y agoThis seems like a clear cut way to get developers to develop or port over their current apps to Amazon's app store. "Sign-up to be a developer for Kindle Fire and submit your apps by April 25th to ensure we have time to review them before millions of dollars in Amazon coins arrive in customers’ accounts." The call to action basically says: We are flooding the market with free money which developers are going to get 70% of.
- iguana 14y agoI wonder if they'll let you transfer coins to other people easily.
- callmeed 14y agoFrom the FAQ: >> Q: Can customers use their Amazon Coins to buy in-game currencies? >> Yes. Customers will be able to purchase in-game currencies with Amazon Coins. Good Lord, how many levels of fake money do we have to travel down?
- teej 14y agoThe "Apple Dollars" you have in your iTunes account from gift cards are no more "real" than Amazon Coins.
- ricardobeat 14y agoAt least it's a (nearly) 1:1 rate.
- Jtsummers 14y agoThis seems to be as well, just multiply the USD amount by 100 or divide the Amazon Coin amount by 100.
- ConstantineXVI 14y agoTaking it out of USD and changing the units around (even though it's just dropping a decimal point) mentally disassociates 'Amazon Coins' from USD. Microsoft goes even further on the Xbox, 1 USD (+ local sales tax) buys 80 MSP; so it takes a moment to realize an 800 MSP game is actually $10.
- kevinpet 14y agoI've seen this many other places. They seem to intentionally choose hard-to-calculate multiples. No one ever sets them at 10 or 100 to the dollar.
- callmeed 14y agoThey are less abstract. My 8 year old's iTunes balance has a $ in front of it. She understands it.
- ricardobeat 14y agoThose coin renderings look a lot like Bitcoin. Thanks for adding to the confusion, Amazon.
- tspiteri 14y agoThose coin renderings look a lot like coins.
- rdl 14y agoA US-only virtual currency to buy stuff from a single US merchant seems pretty pointless. Why not just do the Apple trick and aggregate credit card purchases? Virtual currency sort of makes sense for marginalized communities (unbanked, children, illegals, etc.), but really only makes sense for international.
- gailees 14y agoAmazon is killing it. Any chance they'll become a direct competitor to bitcoin anytime soon!?
- NewAccnt 14y agono.
- blakeshall 14y agoSo XBOX is to Kindle Fire as Microsoft Points are to Amazon Coins?
- daigoba66 14y agoAt least it's 1 coin = $0.01 USD. Far better than Microsofts "Points" where it's I think 79 points = $0.99 USD. This makes it really hard to figure out the actual cost of something listed, for example, 600 points. It also makes things seem cheaper than they really are.
- owenfi 14y agoIt seems like an attempt to convert developers from Play to Amazon Appstore. The $10M seed money will encourage a land rush (or at least they hope). If it doesn't work out it will be easy enough to phase out the program by converting bought coins back to a store-credit.
- lifeisstillgood 14y agoDammit - I read this and thought it was branded bitcoins! Which reminds me - is there any cryptographic reason this cannot be done ?
- NewAccnt 14y agoThere are all sorts of off-brand "bit-coins" already. Litecoins are hoisted on certain forums quite regularly.
- IvyMike 14y agoWhat's the exchange rate with Flooz?
- throwaway420 14y agoOne big difference that Amazon has with other companies that try and lock people in with virtual currencies - Amazon already has more credit cards on file from customers that trust the service and willingly shop from there than just about any other company in the world. So I'm sure there's a reason for this, but just because of the sheer number of credit cards they already have on file I'm having a hard time seeing a real rational for this move. Are they really trying to effectively trick gamers from buying useless game add-ons by divorcing that from its actual monetary cost? Are they betting that heavy hitters on Farmville type games will make this worth their while? That's the only reason I can kind of come up with. If this is the real motive, I'm a bit disappointed because I expect more from Amazon.
- turtlebits 14y agoIt's a marketing tool so they can give out promotional credit. They've been doing it for years by giving out free MP3/Video credits occasionally.
- tommoor 14y agoI read "Amazing Coins Launching" Sorry this comment adds no value ;-)
- buss 14y agoI wonder if one has to pay sales taxes on amazon coins. If not, then they have a successful way around that little nuisance.
- smoyer 14y ago"... a new virtual currency ..." It doesn't seem that way to me. It's more like a bus token since you can only spend it in certain venues. Or a coupon if you can redeem it for cash. At best, it's a virtual bank account.
- T-hawk 14y agoBus tokens and coupons are also virtual currencies. As a merchant, you're free to accept payment in bus tokens, if you like. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrip http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrip Every currency or instrument of value can only be spent in certain venues. Try spending USD in a small French village, for example.
- aseem 14y agoIt seems like it's just a way for Amazon to avoid paying transaction fees on real money. With their margins, this could make sense and be a worthwhile endeavor.
- antihero 14y agoHow about fuck no? The whole point of bitcoin is that it's decentralised and you own your coins. This is basically just Zynga.
- dendory 14y agoThe 'why' is the same reason Xbox points exist. Because it makes the company more money than dealing with micro transactions. Amazon saw Bitcoin's success and tried to use its popularity to name this a virtual currency. Except they failed in the very first sentence, where they start with 'US only'.
- jonknee 14y agoCoin has been used to describe currency for far longer than Bitcoin has been around...
- reddit_clone 14y ago>You will get paid the same 70% revenue share Guess it sounds better than 'We will take a 30% cut of everything you sell!'
- ttrreeww 14y agoIs this the successor to BitCoins?
- jbarham 14y agoMakes me nostalgic for Canadian Tire money...
- DigitalSea 14y agoAt first glance this appears to be a virtual currency along the likes of Bitcoin but then you actually read what Amazon Coins actually is and it's merely a points system along the likes Microsoft Points merely capitalising on the whole Bitcoin virtual currency craze. The fact that it's US only for the moment is another limiting factor, not really that impressive once you break this thing down.
- felipelalli 14y agoBitcoin envy.
- tyang 14y agoBrilliant. Is this goodbye for BitCoins?
- tomelders 14y agoUm.... Amazon Vouchers then. What an vacuous way to market them. I'm having a hard time believing this is anything other than an attempt to hitch a ride on bitcoin's wagon, aimed at exploiting the little bits of info that the uninformed know and/or have heard about "digital coins".
- lucb1e 14y agoIf I never heard of Amazon before and then saw this page, I'd think it was a scam without ever looking back. It looks like another Get Rich Quick-scheme with the obvious gold "Tens of millions of dollars" as first words on the page. That text color also has a goldish tint.
- smackfu 14y agoI can see Amazon using this kind of thing to differentiate better between "real" credit and promotional credit. Like, if I have Prime, and I choose to take a slower shipment time, I can get $1 for MP3 downloads. But that is not the same as if I just had a $1 credit on my Amazon account... it's much less useful. Amazon could make that $1 promotion be a 100 AZC, and it would be a lot more clear.