Add-On Subscriptions Overview

With the Amazon Appstore SDK, you can offer add-on subscriptions in your Fire OS apps. An add-on subscription helps you offer services such as cloud DVR, live sports, family share, or other content like Regional Sports Network (RSN) packages. With add-on subscriptions, you charge a customer separately without changing their base subscription.

Key definitions

Key terms	Definition
In-App Purchasing (IAP)	An API you use to present, process, and fulfill purchases of digital content and subscriptions within your Appstore apps.
Base subscription	A primary in-app subscription that customers purchase directly from Appstore IAP.
Add-on subscription	A secondary in-app subscription that customers purchase in addition to a base subscription.

An add-on subscription is a paid subscription that is charged in addition to the base subscription. An Appstore customer can purchase an add-on subscription after purchasing a base subscription, or purchase both the base and add-on subscription at the same time. When a customer cancels an add-on subscription, Appstore doesn't cancel the base subscription. However, when a customer cancels the base subscription, Appstore automatically cancels the add-on subscription.

The following are key characteristics of an add-on subscription:

• It's always associated with at least one base subscription.
• It's independently managed and the customer can cancel at any time.
• If the customer cancels the associated base subscription, the add-on subscription is automatically canceled.
• It has its own pricing.
• It can have its own introductory promotional price or free trial.

Example add-on subscription

The following diagram shows the base subscription structure of an app named "App A" on the Appstore. The app offers an in-app subscription named "Product A".

Text description for diagram

• "App A" offers "Product A", which is a base subscription offering general entertainment.
• Product A contains the following tiers and rates:
  • Silver tier
    • Offers a monthly term at 9.99 USD.
    • Offers an annual term at 99.99 USD.
  • Gold tier
    • Offers a monthly term at 14.99 USD.
    • Offers an annual term at 149.99 USD.

The app's developer wants to offer a supplemental sports package as an addition to the base subscription, and plans to charge the subscriber an additional 4.99 USD per month for the sports package. To provide the supplemental package, the developer can use an add-on subscription. The following diagram shows the updated subscription structure.

Text description for diagram

• "App A" offers "Product A", which is a base subscription offering general entertainment, and "Product B", which is an add-on subscription offering sports entertainment.
• Product A contains the following tiers and rates:
  • Silver tier
    • Offers a monthly term at 9.99 USD.
    • Offers an annual term at 99.99 USD.
  • Gold tier
    • Offers a monthly term at 14.99 USD.
    • Offers an annual term at 149.99 USD.
• Product B contains the following tiers and rates:
  • Sports add-on tier
    • Offers a monthly term at 4.99 USD.

The add-on subscription product structure is similar to a base subscription structure and includes additional information about its relationship to the base subscription. The product structure is expandable, which means it can support more than one add-on subscription product. Additionally, base terms can have one-to-many or many-to-one mapping with add-on subscription terms.

Add-on subscription implementation responsibilities

The following table summarizes how Amazon divides responsibility between you (the developer) and Appstore when you implement In-App Purchasing (IAP) for an add-on subscription.

Action	Developer	Amazon Appstore	Notes
Set up the add-on subscription.	Yes		Create an add-on subscription in the Developer Console. Map the add-on subscription SKU and the base subscription SKU at the term level. Upload the add-on subscription icon and background image to the Developer Console.
Test the add-on subscription.	Yes		In the Developer Console, you can submit your add-on subscription to the test channel and test with the Live App Testing (LAT) app.
Manage the new purchase flow within the app.	Yes
Perform payment processing for the base and add-on subscriptions.		Yes
Verify entitlements and validate the purchase receipts.	Yes		Use your existing Receipt Verification Service (RVS) setup.
Manage billing for auto-renewing subscriptions for the add-on subscription.		Yes	A customer can cancel the add-on subscription from the subscription management page similar to a regular subscription.
Manage billing for revoking of entitlements.		Yes
Manage the add-on subscription including tier and term changes.		Yes	All existing functionality for the base subscription applies to the add-on subscription.

Appstore customer experience

The following sections show the customer experience for add-on subscriptions, including the purchase and subscription management experience.

Purchase experience

You control add-on subscription discovery within your app. Appstore supports payment processing, validation, and error messages. However, you can customize the purchase flow experience with an icon and background image. When an existing subscriber begins an add-on subscription purchase, Appstore displays the customized add-on purchase verification screen, processes the purchase transaction, and shows the customized confirmation (Thank You) screen. Appstore then sends an email confirmation to the customer.

The following images show the purchase experience of an add-on subscription on Fire TV. To build a unique experience, customize the subscription icon and background image in the Developer Console.

Add-on subscription management experience

Customers can manage add-on subscriptions on the Amazon retail website.

Your Memberships & Subscriptions screen

The following image shows an add-on subscription on the "Your Memberships & Subscriptions" screen.

A customer can navigate to this page with these instructions:

• From the right side of the top navigation bar, hover over Hello <Name> Accounts & Lists, then select Memberships & Subscriptions.

Your Subscriptions screen

The following image shows an add-on subscription on the "Your Subscriptions" screen from the Amazon Appstore section of the retail website.

A customer can navigate to this page with these steps:

1. From the left side of the top navigation bar, select All.
2. Under Digital Content & Devices, select Amazon Appstore, then select Manage Subscriptions.

Add-on subscription renewal and cancellation

The following business rules apply to renewals and cancellations:

• A customer can have different renewal cycles for the base subscription and the add-on subscription.

• A customer can cancel an add-on subscription at any time from the Amazon retail website "Your Subscriptions" section without impacting the base subscription.

• If the customer cancels a base subscription, Appstore warns the customer about a potential add-on subscription cancellation. On the day of the base subscription expiration, Appstore automatically cancels the add-on subscription and immediately refunds any subscription balance back to the customer.

• If the base subscription for the customer is canceled immediately (due to a payment issue or Contact Center cancellation), the add-on subscription, if active, is automatically canceled with prorated refunds for the unused balance.

• If an existing customer changes the tier or term of the base subscription, the system either carries over the add-on subscription to the new tier or cancels the add-on subscription. The behavior is based on the mapping you defined in the Developer Console.

Related topics

• Set Up Add-On Subscriptions
• Add-On Subscriptions FAQ

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Last updated: May 20, 2026