Amazon.com Inc. announced today that it will work with providers of e-commerce technology to promote its Amazon Payments option on other retailers’ e-commerce sites.
The release announcing the Amazon Payments Partner Program lists three participating providers of e-commerce software as part of the program: Shopify Inc., PrestaShop SA of France and FutureShop of Japan. Amazon says it will provide ready-made links from the software of participating partners to the payments service, training and marketing support. The program is free and available by invitation in the Unites States, United Kingdom, Germany and Japan.
“The Amazon Payments Partner Program provides partners with the tools and resources needed to extend the trust and convenience of the Amazon experience to their merchant customers,” says Patrick Gauthier, vice president, Amazon Payments. “We are working together across geographies and industries to help merchants grow and create experiences that delight customers throughout the shopping journey.”
67 of the top 1000 online retailers in North America offer Amazon Payments, which allows a consumer with an Amazon account to log in with her Amazon credentials and then use the payment and shipping information she has stored with Amazon.com when buying on other e-retail sites. Apart from the major credit card brands, the leading alternative payment options offered by Top 1000 retailers are PayPal (466), BillMeLater (136), Google Wallet (141) and eBillme (30), according to Top500Guide.com. BillMeLater is a credit option offered by PayPal Inc.
Amazon Payments, like PayPal, charges online retailers 2.9% of the transaction amount plus 30 cents.
Amazon says the Amazon Payments logo can give credibility to startup web retailers and provide a convenient way to pay at larger e-retailers and built-in fraud protection services. But one executive who formerly worked for Google Inc.’s Google Wallet payment service says many online retailers are likely to be wary of collaborating with Amazon.
“The issue retailers always have with Amazon is that, as much as they compete with other retailers, Amazon is really their largest competitor,” says Jeremy Arnon, vice president of sales at mobile ad firm ActionX. “So I don’t know that they would be as open to partnering with Amazon as other more pure-play payment folks like a PayPal or Google or Apple where they’re not directly competing for other business with them.” ActionX is part of Xaxis, a subsidiary of global advertising conglomerate WPP.
Michael Moeser, director of the payments practice, retail and small business, at Javelin Strategy & Research, notes that merchants that sell on Amazon already use Amazon Payments to handle those purchases, and that this move is intended to extend the service and compete more directly with PayPal.
He advises retailers considering Amazon Payments to explore all the payment options available, looking particularly at how they make shopping more convenient on mobile devices.
“Conduct research on Venmo (owned by PayPal), Apple, and others offering or planning to offer in-app purchase capabilities and determine if this is important to you today and where will it be in two years,” he says. “Where does Amazon Payments stack up? While picking a single platform would be ideal, you may need to have more than one.”
Amazon says its new partner program includes Premier Partner, Certified Partner and Certified Developer levels, providing distinct options for e-commerce software providers as opposed to developers.
“Our merchants want to offer their customers a payment solution that is trusted, easy and familiar,” says Brennan Loh, director of business development at Shopify. “We’re excited to be a Premier Partner in the Amazon Payments Partner Program, enabling our merchants to offer Pay with Amazon.”
The Amazon Payments website says the payments option is already available for use in several other e-commerce platforms, including those from Magento, WooCommerce and Volusion.