Amazon Coin is a digital payment method created by

Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational technology company focusing on e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. It has been referred to as "one of the most influential econom ...

. Currently, the coins can only be used to purchase software and for

microtransactions Microtransactions, often abbreviated as mtx, are a business model where users can purchase virtual goods with micropayments. Microtransactions are often used in free-to-play games to provide a revenue source for the developers. While microtransact ...

on apps downloaded from the

Amazon Appstore Amazon Appstore is an app store for Android-compatible platforms operated by Amazon.com Services, LLC, a subsidiary of Amazon. The store is primarily used as the storefront for Amazon's Android-based Fire OS. including Amazon Fire tablets, ...

Kindle Kindle may refer to: Companies and products * Amazon Kindle, an e-reader line by Amazon.com ** Kindle Direct Publishing, an e-book publishing platform by Amazon ** Kindle Store, an online e-book e-commerce store by Amazon * Kindle Banking Systems, ...

Kindle Fire The Amazon Fire, formerly called the Kindle Fire, is a line of tablet computers developed by Amazon. Built with Quanta Computer, the Kindle Fire was first released in November 2011, featuring a color 7-inch multi-touch display with IPS te ...

, and Android devices.

History

Amazon introduced Amazon Coins on July 13, 2013, in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

and gave 500 free coins valued $5/£3 to all users of

devices, who could use the coins to purchase apps, games, and in-app purchases on the

. However, in 2014, Amazon started allowing all Android users in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, and the United States to earn, buy, and spend Amazon Coins on the Appstore using Android phones and tablets. Users could also get discounts when they bought the coins in bulk and earn coins through certain apps on the Appstore. In 2014, with the release of the

Fire Phone The Fire Phone was a 3D-enabled smartphone developed by Amazon and manufactured by Foxconn. It was announced on June 18, 2014, and marked Amazon's first foray into the smartphone market, following the success of the Kindle Fire. It was available ...

, Amazon offered app developers 500,000 Amazon Coins for each paid app or app with in-app purchasing developed and optimized for the

Function and value

Amazon has called Amazon Coins a "

virtual currency Virtual currency, or virtual money, is a digital currency that is largely unregulated and issued and usually controlled by its developers and used and accepted electronically among the members of a specific virtual community. In 2014, the Europe ...

". However, the Coins operate like other digital

gift card A gift card also known as gift certificate in North America, or gift voucher or gift token in the UK is a prepaid stored-value card, stored-value money card, usually issued by a retailer or bank, to be used as an alternative to cash for purcha ...

s. One Amazon Coin is worth one cent. However, like many

coupons In marketing, a coupon is a ticket or document that can be redeemed for a financial discount or rebate when purchasing a product. Customarily, coupons are issued by manufacturers of consumer packaged goods or by retailers, to be used in re ...

, they cannot be redeemed for cash. While you can gift other accounts Amazon Coins during the purchasing process, you cannot transfer coins that have already been added to an account. Purchased Coins do not expire, but some promotional Coins expire just over one year from the date they are acquired. When a customer buys software with Amazon Coins, the developer is paid in conventional currency.

References

Amazon (company) Payment systems Digital currencies {{money-unit-stub