Amazon recently announced that they will be allowing companies to register their mobile websites and web apps for distribution on the Kindle Fire and select Android devices via the Amazon store. This announcement opens up an interesting opportunity to organizations that have pre-existing mobile web applications and have been exploring ways to tap the Android market. The site suggests that if the content and functionality contained in your web app is currently free via the internet, that the app should be free in the store as well, but that if there is paid content available, you can leverage an in-app purchase to accept payment.

At Accella, we have always been big proponents of native application development vs wrapper technology, such as PhoneGap or Cordova, for deployment to the various app stores. Native development via Objective-C (iOS) and Java (Android) allows for a better user experience (faster) and a better use of native controls, simplifying and speeding both development and debugging. That being said, as long as the user knows what they are getting (a web app vs a native app), the prospect of leveraging web technologies becomes more appealing in certain situations.

If you’re curious whether it makes sense to push your mobile web app or site to the Amazon store, give us a call and we can help you evaluate what makes the most sense.

Still unclear on the difference between mobile web and native apps? Our own John Rainey can give you a breakdown…