Amazon wants to put all your digital subscriptions under one roof

No stranger to adding new products, Amazon is looking to put out something different from its regular selection of goods: digital subscriptions.

Subscribe with Amazon is Amazon's latest addition to the company's ever-expanding repertoire, offering a way for subscription-supported services to let customers check out directly through Amazon's website.

According to a press release, Subscribe with Amazon will improve visibility by offering a service its own listing on Amazon's site, as well as easy-to-use APIs for conveniently managing your page and offering simple payment plans of the introductory, monthly, and annual variety.

What does that mean for a customer? For the regular Amazon shopper, the process for picking up a few months of Consumer Reports or premium Dropbox service is virtually the same as adding anything else to your Amazon cart. 

Integration with Amazon also means you can manage multiple subscriptions just by checking one site — a boon to those who prefer not having their personal (and credit card) information spread out over a dozen different sites.  

Prime Subscriptions

Of course, Amazon is ultimately running a business, so services that go with Subscribe with Amazon will have to fork over 30% of whatever it makes on new subscribers, dropping to 15% for repeat buyers.

Additionally, Subscribe with Amazon will also give the electronic retailer a chance to increase the value of its own subscription. Amazon plans on offering special deals via Subscribe with Amazon exclusively for Amazon Prime members, such as a discount on a digital magazine subscription or a free month of online crafts courses.

To qualify for selling through Subscribe with Amazon, a service currently has to offer a product via an app, website, or software. Second, the business needs to be based in the US and finally, the customer must pay a recurring fee to access the product.

This is far from Amazon's first attempt at doing everything in-house for digital services. The retail giant introduced Amazon Coins back in 2013 as an incentivized, alternative digital currency for buying apps and making in-app purchases, though they're currently exclusive to Amazon Fire devices.

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