Android and Me |
- Amazon adds in-app purchases to its app store
- Toshiba announces 7.7, 10, and 13-inch Excite Tablets, coming in May/June
- HTC One V video shows off unboxing and benchmark scores
| Amazon adds in-app purchases to its app store Posted: 10 Apr 2012 10:04 AM PDT  Like it or not, the freemium model is here to stay. Last year, Google started allowing in-app purchases for applications on the Play Store, allowing developers to put out a bare-bones application for free and charge customers for additional content from within the app itself. This move only applied to the Play Store, and not third-party application markets. The Amazon App Store is certainly the largest of the third-party app stores and today they have announced that they too have started allowing in-app purchases on applications hosted on their store. Amazon’s integration brings with it one of the primary advantage Amazon brings to the table: one-click purchasing. As an Amazon Prime member, I’ve come to trust and depend on Amazon’s payment process, a process which makes it stupid easy for me to throw more and more money at Amazon every day. Now developers of Android applications will have the option to provide this same type of experience to their customers. Several developers are already on board, most notably ZeptoLab, Disney, Glu, Gameloft, Conde Nast, Dow Jones, and the New York Post. Developers interested in integrating in-app purchasing to their Amazon App Store application can check out Amazon’s Youtube channel for more info. And all you Android users out there, what do you think about the move toward in-app purchases and “freemium” application models? Sound off in the comments. Show Press ReleaseAmazon Appstore Announces In-App Purchasing Service for Kindle Fire and Other Android Devices Developers can now offer digital content and subscriptions within apps and games using Amazon's 1-Click purchasing SEATTLE – April 10, 2012 – (NASDAQ: AMZN) – Amazon.com, Inc. today announced an In-App Purchasing (IAP) service, making it easy for Amazon Appstore developers to offer digital content and subscriptions for purchase within apps and games that are available on millions of Kindle Fires and other Android devices. Amazon Appstore's In-App Purchasing service is simple for developers to integrate and helps monetize their apps and games, while offering customers a seamless and secure 1-Click purchasing experience. Top developers including ZeptoLab, Disney, Glu Mobile Inc., Storm8, Social Gaming Network, Gameloft, G5 Entertainment Inc,. and top publishers like Condé Nast, Dow Jones and New York Post have already integrated Amazon Appstore's In-App Purchasing API and are offering millions of Amazon customers in-app content and subscriptions. To learn more, developers can watch a video about Amazon's In-App Purchasing service at http://www.youtube.com/ "Amazon Appstore's In-App Purchasing service enables developers to generate more revenue from their apps," said Aaron Rubenson, Director of Amazon Appstore. "In-App Purchasing is simple to integrate and gives developers access to millions of Amazon customers who are already familiar with Amazon's 1-Click payment system. Many of Amazon Appstore's customers have shopped with Amazon before and they trust Amazon's easy payment process, which leads to higher conversion of developers' in-app content and subscriptions."
G5 Entertainment "We found that by offering a product with IAP, rather than other monetization types, our conversion rates went up as did our revenue on a per title basis," said Larissa McCleary, Director of Marketing at G5 Entertainment, Inc., creator of Virtual City Playground and Mahjong Artifacts. "Although our experience on Amazon has always been great, we are thrilled now that IAP is available."
Social Gaming Network "Amazon’s in-app purchasing solution created a great way for us to reduce friction and drive more revenue from our games, as millions of people already have Amazon accounts," said Michael Ritter, Senior Vice President Licensing & Distribution at Social Gaming Network, maker of Warp Rush, Dress Up Fashion, Bird’s the Word, and Night of the Living Dead Defense. "Kindle Fire already has a well-integrated store front and marketplace to distribute mobile games. By enabling in-app purchases we are able to be more flexible in pricing. We can release free games, provide updates and enhancements, and continue to monetize."
Storm8 "With Amazon's impressive track record and tremendous success with the Kindle, we knew the Appstore would be a hit, so we signed up right away. And when we heard that Amazon was launching the SDK with in-app purchasing, it was a no-brainer for us to integrate," said Perry Tam, CEO and Co-Founder at Storm8, producer of games such as Restaurant Story, Bakery Story, Farm Story, Fashion Story. "Our experience with the Amazon Appstore has been great. We were thrilled when they decided to add in-app purchasing support to their SDK, and the Amazon team worked closely with us throughout the beta test for this feature. Our games quickly gained traction on the platform; all of the Storm8 apps hit the Appstore's Top 10 list within a week of launching." New York Post "By integrating In-App Purchasing, our goal was to offer Amazon’s frictionless purchasing experience to our customers. This includes the ability for customers to easily subscribe using 1-Click, take advantage of a 14-day free trial, and to auto-renew," said David Rozzi, Director of Digital Projects at New York Post. "We're excited about the results so far, and we look forward to continuing to provide content to customers on Kindle Fire and other Android devices." Mobile Deluxe "Implementing the Amazon Appstore for Android In-App Purchasing solution was a piece of cake. We were able to turn it around and get it into internal testing within a few days' time," said Sean Thompson, Vice President of Production, Mobile Deluxe. "The documentation was top notch and the SDK contained everything we needed to test the implementation." Adobe “The Amazon Appstore SDK made it easy for us to enable Digital Publishing Suite to support in application purchasing of both single issues and subscriptions of digital magazines on Kindle Fire,” said Zeke Koch, Senior Director, Product Management, Digital Publishing at Adobe. “Amazon's well-designed API and rapid support allowed us to help our enterprise publishing customers be first on the Fire." To see how simple it is to integrate, developers can watch a video about Amazon's In-App Purchasing service atwww.youtube.com/
About Amazon Appstore for Android The Amazon Appstore for Android is where customers can find, discover and buy thousands of apps using Amazon's convenient and trusted shopping features, including personalized recommendations, customer reviews and bestseller lists. Customers can access the store directly on Kindle Fire, from any computer, or on an Android phone or tablet. Amazon Appstore has a broad selection of paid and free apps and games, including established bestsellers and new apps from top-tier brands. More apps and games are added daily and the Amazon Appstore offers customers a great paid app for free, every day.
About Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), a Fortune 500 company based in Seattle, opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth's Biggest Selection. Amazon.com, Inc. seeks to be Earth's most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices. Amazon.com and other sellers offer millions of unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as Books; Movies, Music & Games; Digital Downloads; Electronics & Computers; Home & Garden; Toys, Kids & Baby; Grocery; Apparel, Shoes & Jewelry; Health & Beauty; Sports & Outdoors; and Tools, Auto & Industrial. Amazon Web Services provides Amazon's developer customers with access to in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon's own back-end technology platform, which developers can use to enable virtually any type of business. The new latest generation Kindle is the lightest, most compact Kindle ever and features the same 6-inch, most advanced electronic ink display that reads like real paper even in bright sunlight. Kindle Touch is a new addition to the Kindle family with an easy-to-use touch screen that makes it easier than ever to turn pages, search, shop, and take notes – still with all the benefits of the most advanced electronic ink display. Kindle Touch 3G is the top of the line e-reader and offers the same new design and features of Kindle Touch, with the unparalleled added convenience of free 3G. Kindle Fire is the Kindle for movies, TV shows, music, books, magazines, apps, games and web browsing with all the content, free storage in the Amazon Cloud, Whispersync, Amazon Silk (Amazon's new revolutionary cloud-accelerated web browser), vibrant color touch screen, and powerful dual-core processor. Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com, www.amazon.co.uk, www.amazon.de,www.amazon.co.jp, www.amazon.fr, www.amazon.ca, www.amazon.cn, www.amazon.it, and www.amazon.es. As used herein, "Amazon.com," "we," "our" and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates otherwise.
Forward-Looking Statements This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may differ significantly from management’s expectations. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, risks related to competition, management of growth, new products, services and technologies, potential fluctuations in operating results, international expansion, outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment center optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system interruption, inventory, government regulation and taxation, payments and fraud. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com‘s financial results is included inAmazon.com‘s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings.
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| Toshiba announces 7.7, 10, and 13-inch Excite Tablets, coming in May/June Posted: 10 Apr 2012 08:48 AM PDT  Though Toshiba largely swung and missed with the Thrive line of tablets, they’re going all in on a new line of tablets in the Excite line. Toshiba apparently listened to consumer feedback from the Thrive, and has traded in the bulky, port-heavy body for an extremely thin chassis. The Excite will come in three different variants, with a 7.7″ device with the same AMOLED display we loved in the Galaxy Tab 7.7, a 10″ model with 1280 x 800 resolution, and a whopping 13″, 1600 x 900 model. Those who long for the full-functionality found in the original Thrive tablets will be happy to know that the 10″ and 13″ variants both sport a full-sized SD card slot, though the USB and HDMI ports were trashed in favor of thinness. All three models will pack the Tegra 3 SoC chipset, which is good news for those of you who use tablets for mobile gaming. While the Excite tablets are crazy thin (and, incredibly good-looking), the price points are not. Excite 7.7″ – June 10th Release Date
Excite 10″ – May 6th Release Date
Excite 13″ – June 10th Release Date
Though we certainly expect tablet computers to be fairly expensive, I have a hard time seeing Toshiba selling many of these tablets at the currently named price points. And while many of us think we would love a 13″ tablet, once you get above a 10″ device, the portability aspect goes out the window. Still, the Thrive tablets are some of the best-looking Android tablets to be unveiled, and the form factor could move units. The continued release of tablets puts pressure on Google to urge developers to step up the development game for Android tablet applications. Until we start to see applications that don’t look like blown-up phone applications, I have a hard time seeing Android tablets take off outside of the core Android crowd. Who out there wants one of these bad boys? Would you use a 13″ tablet? Sound off in the comments. Show Press ReleaseTOSHIBA SET TO EXCITE THE TABLET MARKET WITH NEW 10-, 13- AND 7.7-INCH TABLETS “One size does not fit all, so we are carefully considering how and where people are using tablets and designing form factors to best suit various needs,” said Carl Pinto, vice president of product development, Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., Digital Products Division. “With amazingly thin and light designs, our new Excite family of tablets continues to incorporate what consumers have come to love about Toshiba tablets: essential ports for a more complete tablet computing experience plus durability that ensures they can go the distance.” Powered to Perform, Built to Last and Designed to Excite Each tablet is equipped with a 5-megapixel camera on the back, along with a 2-megapixel front-facing shooter for convenient photography, video capture and chat. The tablets also include stereo speakers with exclusive sound enhancements by Toshiba and SRS® Labs, as well as Wi-Fi® and Bluetooth® connectivity. Excite 10: Smart, Speedy, Durable Delivering more performance than previous generation tablets, the Excite 10 tablet is powered by a quad-core NVIDIA® Tegra™ 3 processorv with GeForce graphicsvi and 1GB of RAMvii, opening up new possibilities for everyday multi-purpose use and next generation mobile games. Built to do more than the average tablet, users can enjoy easy syncing and sharing between all of their favorite devices, with a selection of built-in ports, including Micro USB, Micro HDMI® and a full-size SD card slot. Excite 13: More Screen for More of Everything With a 13.3-inch diagonal AutoBrite™ LED Backlit display with 10-finger touch support, the tablet boasts a cinematic 16:9 aspect ratio and 1600×900 native resolution, perfect for watching HD movies and videos. A four-speaker sound system with exclusive sound enhancements by Toshiba and SRS Labs delivers amazing audio and an included tablet stand makes it easy to prop up on a table, kitchen countertop or coffee table to share videos with friends and family. Not only great for movies, the Excite 13 tablet can power through the latest games and multitask with ease. Powered by the quad-core NVIDIA Tegra™ 3 mobile processorix with GeForce graphicsx and 1GB of memoryxi, the large display tablet offers smooth, console-quality gaming plus the performance for high definition entertainment. Extremely power efficient, the Excite 13 tablet is targeted to deliver up to 13 hours of battery lifexii and seven days of stand-by. The Excite 13 tablet includes Micro USB, Micro HDMI® ports and a full-size SD card slot for syncing and sharing content. Excite 7.7: A Brilliant AMOLED Display Exceptionally powerful and able to tackle the latest games and HD content, the Excite 7.7 tablet is powered by a quad-core NVIDIA® Tegra™ 3 processor with GeForce graphicsxiii and 1GB of memoryxiv. The tablet includes a Micro USB port and a Micro SD card slot for syncing and sharing content. The Convenience of Android and Exclusive Toshiba Apps Pricing and Availability The Excite 7.7 tablet will be available for purchase on June 10, 2012 for $499.99 MSRPxviii for the 16GB model and $579.99 MSRPxix for the 32GB model. The Excite 13 tablet will be available for purchase on June 10, 2012 for $649.99 MSRPxx for the 32GB model and $749.99 MSRPxxi for the 64GB model. These tablets will be available at major retailers, e-tailers and direct from Toshiba at ToshibaDirect.com. Image Gallery: http://bit.ly/excitetablets.
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| HTC One V video shows off unboxing and benchmark scores Posted: 10 Apr 2012 06:02 AM PDT  The HTC One X and One S have been getting a lot of attention lately, but that doesn’t mean the entry-level HTC One V has been completely forgotten. Even though the HTC One V isn’t expected to go on sale in Europe for a few more weeks, that doesn’t mean we have to wait that long to get a closer look at the device. Netbook news managed to buy the HTC One V in Taiwan, and were kind enough to share a pretty lengthy unboxing video which also covers a few benchmarks and shows the handset running some of the latest games featured on Google Play. The HTC One V may be running on a Snapdragon S2 SoC with the Adreno 205 GPU, but you’ll notice that the benchmark numbers and gaming performance is definitely a step or two ahead of last year’s phone running on the same chip. Combine the handset’s performance with HTC’s new ImageSense camera technology and a $325 price tag and you have the ingredients for an instant success. We’re expecting several regional carriers in the U.S. market to sell the HTC One V within the next month or two. We don’t know what the handset’s final price will be on this side of the Atlantic, but the One V would be impossible to pass up if someone prices it at $300. Is the HTC One V the right combination of value and performance with phones like the HTC One X on the market? HTC One V Specifications
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