Intellectual Property, Deceptive Behavior, and Spam Policy
This page discusses the Amazon Appstore policies regarding Intellectual Property (IP), deceptive behavior, and spam.
The examples in each section describe specific app scenarios that violate the Amazon Appstore Content Policies and will be rejected by the Appstore. These lists are not exhaustive, and the examples may change over time as new scenarios arise.
Intellectual Property (IP) and Copyright
Your apps, including app metadata, must not infringe on the intellectual property rights (including copyright, trademark and publicity rights) of a third party.
For questions about how to use Amazon's trademarks and branding for promoting your app, please see Amazon’s Trademark, Brand, and Marketing Guidelines.
If you believe another app is using content that infringes upon your intellectual property, you can report it to Amazon using our online form.
Avoiding IP Violations
You must have permission to use third-party copyrighted content, trademarked content, or content that incorporates the name, image, or likeness of a celebrity. Many developers believe that they may use such content without infringing upon the third party's intellectual property rights as long as they include a disclaimer stating that such use is unofficial or that they are not affiliated with the intellectual property owner. This is not the case; any unauthorized use of a third party's intellectual property, regardless of any disclosure or disclaimer, can constitute intellectual property infringement.
As the developer, you are ultimately responsible for ensuring that you hold all necessary intellectual property rights to distribute an app through Amazon. If you are unsure if you own all rights to the app and its content, please consult an attorney.
Examples of IP Violations
- An app that contains reproductions or translations of copyrighted content without proper authorization.
- An app that uses brand names, logos or promotional images from a third party (including products, organizations, sport clubs, characters, etc.) in the app or app metadata without proper permission.
- An app that uses celebrity images and/or celebrity names in the app or app metadata without proper permission of the celebrity.
- An app that fails to abide by the terms of an open-source software license, such as failing to provide attribution of the open-source software used to build the app and/or modifications to the open-source code used if required by the license.
Deceptive Behavior
Your app must not facilitate or engage in deceptive behavior.
Examples of Apps with Deceptive Behavior
- An app that uses malicious functionality, such as stealing the user’s personal information.
- An app that misrepresents its functionality, such as a prank app that does not disclose the prank functionality in the app’s description.
- An app that mischaracterizes its relationship with a brand, such as implying sponsorship or endorsement by Amazon but does not actually have it.
- An app that directly copies the functionality or user interface of another app without being associated with or authorized by the other app.
- An app that is given a similar name to a popular app to trick users into downloading it, such as an app named Faceebook.
Spam
Your app must not spam, phish, or send unsolicited messages to users.
Examples of Spam
- An app that sends messages on a user’s behalf without notifying the user first or getting the user’s consent.
Last updated: Jul 10, 2024