Amazon.com, through their subsidiary A9.com, launched a new iPhone app today called Flow Powered by Amazon.
The new app will allow shoppers to browse through real brick-and-mortar stores and scan items of interest. If the app does not recognize the product with a quick scan of the product or packaging, the barcode can be scanned. After scanning, the app delivers up information from Amazon. The information will include Amazon’s product description, price, multi-media content, ratings, customer reviews, and of course, display an Amazon “buy” button.
Amazon says the app can provide information on books, video games, CDs, DVDs and millions of other products with UPC barcodes. The app will also have sharing options through Twitter, Facebook, and email.
The Flow/Amazon app puts the complete Amazon store in the hands of users as they browse through a local brick and mortar store. Not only will it provide a wealth of information on products the shopper is interested in, but will also provide a way for the shopper to buy it online from Amazon as they are standing in a local store looking at the product.
It will be interesting to see how stores respond to this. Will they come out against it? Propose regulations? Or perhaps offer price matching?
This one little app, available for free from the Apple App Store, has the potential to be a major game changer in the shopping arena.
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