Amazon.co.uk has this week finally started selling games and other computer software. With a selection of both PC and Mac software, customers can now download the likes of Microsoft Office, anti-virus software and a selection of games directly from Amazon. Previously, the UK site had only shipped out physical discs.
Software downloads have been a successful part of Amazon’s main US site, with many international customers even resorting to fake addresses to purchase their competitively priced software. The software downloads are merely the latest digital products to be introduced to the .co.uk site, following on from eBooks, MP3s and recently launched AutoRip.
However, while Amazon’s UK site has long-since served Irish customers, we are still being ‘locked out’ of most of their digital offerings. Anyone attempting to purchase software from an Irish address is met with this warning on the confirmation screen:
Similar restrictions apply to those wanting to purchase digital music or books, with Irish Kindle owners having to resort to complicated technical methods and multiple profiles to access the UK store rather than the default American one.
Unfortunately, with no dedicated Amazon.ie (despite the company’s physical Irish presence) many of Amazon’s most popular services remain inaccessible to Irish customers. Although there are various and often complicated rights issues between the different marketplaces, an increasing majority of digital retailers - such as Steam, Netflix and iTunes - offer almost identical services in both countries, albeit in different currencies.
Recent years have seen many positive developments for Internet retail in Ireland, with Amazon dropping a majority of their long-existing postal restrictions to the country, especially in terms of electronics. Services like Parcel Motel have also allowed Irish customers to purchase once ‘UK only’ products at a small extra cost. However, the digital region locks illustrate that Ireland is still disappointingly far down the list of priorities for Amazon.
(Images: Amazon.co.uk)
