Just another 'gift card' system - they can only be spent with amazon, and they have no value outside of amazon.
If £1 buys you 10 amazon coins then each amazon coin will be worth 10pence - and I highly doubt amazon would let this change. Therefor they 'inflate' as the fiat money they are based on does.
I have never really understood gift-cards, because fiat money is more secure - and has an actual value. Too many companies are going under and refusing to honour gift cards when/if they are bought out by another company.
Topic: Amazon releases Amazon Coins... reactions? - page 2. (Read 4406 times)
They do it to save on credit card fees. Since there's a fixed cost per transaction, small payments of less than a dollar are not cost-effective. If they can get people to buy $20 worth of Amazon Coins at once, it saves them money. It's the same idea behind xbox points.
Yup. It's just a gift card, or xbox points, etc. My guess is these will not be transferable, so instead of picking an app, clicking "Buy," having it charge your card, and instantly downloading it, you'll be looking for coins, buying them, essentially letting someone else hold on to your money, and then using coins to purchase that app. Sounds like a REALLY stupid business idea that will only make things more difficult and confusing.
So what you're saying is, it's good for bitcoin. 
I would say it's completely irrelevant for bitcoin, but is bad for Amazon. Waste of company money.
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I don't think this is a currency...it's just a gift card system really...
I like the fact that they're calling them coins, because when anyone gripes about Bitcoin being used for evil, the question can naturally follow: "why are bitcoins bad but Amazon coins are OK? What's the difference?"
Any dialogue that follows that line of questioning can only be good for Bitcoin.
That's a good point, kind of like why MintChip is *good* for Bitcoin.
I don't think this is a currency...it's just a gift card system really...
I like the fact that they're calling them coins, because when anyone gripes about Bitcoin being used for evil, the question can naturally follow: "why are bitcoins bad but Amazon coins are OK? What's the difference?"
Any dialogue that follows that line of questioning can only be good for Bitcoin.
We've got a winner 
I don't think this is a currency...it's just a gift card system really...
My guess is these will not be transferable, so instead of picking an app, clicking "Buy," having it charge your card, and instantly downloading it, you'll be looking for coins, buying them, essentially letting someone else hold on to your money, and then using coins to purchase that app. Sounds like a REALLY stupid business idea that will only make things more difficult and confusing.
So what you're saying is, it's good for bitcoin. I would say it's completely irrelevant for bitcoin, but is bad for Amazon. Waste of company money.
No, the reason they do this is "banking in disguise", they apparently will make further payments down the road. They can first offer kindle discount, make it acceptable and on par with dollars , then begin to allow people pay each other, then they will compete with paypal. Then they will have "deposit", balances unused. Then ....
It is not a bad plan, but it is really nothing new.
My guess is these will not be transferable, so instead of picking an app, clicking "Buy," having it charge your card, and instantly downloading it, you'll be looking for coins, buying them, essentially letting someone else hold on to your money, and then using coins to purchase that app. Sounds like a REALLY stupid business idea that will only make things more difficult and confusing.
So what you're saying is, it's good for bitcoin. I would say it's completely irrelevant for bitcoin, but is bad for Amazon. Waste of company money.
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My guess is these will not be transferable, so instead of picking an app, clicking "Buy," having it charge your card, and instantly downloading it, you'll be looking for coins, buying them, essentially letting someone else hold on to your money, and then using coins to purchase that app. Sounds like a REALLY stupid business idea that will only make things more difficult and confusing.
So what you're saying is, it's good for bitcoin.
My guess is these will not be transferable, so instead of picking an app, clicking "Buy," having it charge your card, and instantly downloading it, you'll be looking for coins, buying them, essentially letting someone else hold on to your money, and then using coins to purchase that app. Sounds like a REALLY stupid business idea that will only make things more difficult and confusing.
maybe we can setup an exchange ACOINS <=> BTC
Loving that idea, looks like we have a new fiscal game in town.Only if they let giving coins to other users.
Otherwise, it's going to be just like airline miles or BP (british petrol) points. Useless. Can't sell them, can't trade them, can't use them anywhere except on the services provided by amazon. .
The fact that Amazon has done this implies two things. One is that they recognize the power of digital money. Two is that they just don't get the open source concept and why it is fundamentally different than anything they can own.
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"Bitcoin? For drugs? No way, think of them like Amazon coins."
THe first one will lead the listener to say
WTF, the second one won't.
THe first one will lead the listener to say
WTF, the second one won't."So Bitcoins are worth $1 each and I can only buy them on $20 gift cards and I can only buy apps for a Kindle with them? Why would I want that? WTF?". Not completely analogous.
You're confusing the logical with the perceptive.
The logical person is already against the war on drugs and doesn't need the comparison.
The kind of person this comparison works on already thinks "OMG drugs ban them", and puts more weight on whether two words rhyme versus whether a premise is logical.
Is someone still wrong if they're against the war on drugs because it doesn't rhyme? hehe.
I think closed-credits will have rules applied that they cannot be exchanged between other members no doubt or lest Amazon be up against the same wall everyone else has been (including Facebook). I could see them confiscating funds that were involved in user-to-user trades making it just as dangerous as a number of other stored-credit > BTC exchanges.
"Bitcoin? For drugs? No way, think of them like Amazon coins."
THe first one will lead the listener to say WTF, the second one won't.
THe first one will lead the listener to say
WTF, the second one won't."So Bitcoins are worth $1 each and I can only buy them on $20 gift cards and I can only buy apps for a Kindle with them? Why would I want that? WTF?". Not completely analogous.
You're confusing the logical with the perceptive.
The logical person is already against the war on drugs and doesn't need the comparison.
The kind of person this comparison works on already thinks "OMG drugs ban them", and puts more weight on whether two words rhyme versus whether a premise is logical.
"Bitcoin? For drugs? No way, think of them like Amazon coins."
THe first one will lead the listener to say WTF, the second one won't.
THe first one will lead the listener to say
WTF, the second one won't."So Bitcoins are worth $1 each and I can only buy them on $20 gift cards and I can only buy apps for a Kindle with them? Why would I want that? WTF?". Not completely analogous.
It is just another way for Amazon to cash in on "breakage", a term for unspent gift cards and unspent points and money in accounts.
This is in no way competition. No more than American Airlines frequent flier miles. Private money is worthless to me.
why should this in any way be related to Bitcoin?
looks more like a standard bonus miles system
what is special here?
looks more like a standard bonus miles system
what is special here?
Just because it sounds nice.
"Bitcoin? For drugs? No way, think of them like flyer miles."
"Bitcoin? For drugs? No way, think of them like Amazon coins."
THe first one will lead the listener to say
WTF, the second one won't. Of course we know nothing about Amazon inflationary plans... nor if Amazon will leak to the gov the amount of coins an individual has.
It sounds like they're pegged to the US dollar and not free floating, so inflation or the number in circulation shouldn't matter. As long as Amazon is willing and able to accept them at their equivalent dollar value, then they are essentially propping them up to be worth that. Without that, they're worth zero.
maybe we can setup an exchange ACOINS <=> BTC
Loving that idea, looks like we have a new fiscal game in town. Jump to: