Amazon to launch Android app store

Online mega-market Amazon has just announced plans to launch its own app store for Android phones.

According to TechCrunch, Amazon will be approving all app submissions individually, unlike Google's current Android Market.

Apparently the online retailer will aim to be a little more lenient than Apple is with its App Store, but nevertheless hopes to keep the shop devoid of the broken software that often mires Google's emporium.

The other key difference between Amazon's offering and the Android Market is that developers will not be able to dictate pricing.

Developers can set a preferred 'List Price' but Amazon will then determine what price it thinks is suitable. The creator gets an industry standard 70 per cent cut on each sale but if Amazon decides to discount an app or offers it for free, they're guaranteed 20 per cent of the List Price originally quoted.

Amazon hopes to entice developers with its promise to help "market your apps to tens of millions of customers using Amazon's proven marketing and merchandising capabilities."

No release date has yet been confirmed for consumers, but a developer portal is now open for business.