Amazon's Appstore catalog may soon be growing much larger. The company has announced that it's now accepting web apps into its digital storefront, offering web developers the same widespread distribution to Kindle Fire owners that native Android applications currently enjoy. "Developers can submit and distribute mobile web content without using third party software or doing any native app development," Amazon says, noting that developers can even incorporate in-app purchases within their software thanks to newfound JavaScript compatibility.

Web apps must be HTML5-based to be granted access to the Amazon Appstore, but beyond that the requirements are simple. Developers simply provide a URL for their web app, and before long it will be available alongside native apps and games like Facebook and Where's My Mickey?. Pickings are slim out of the gate, with just a few games and an IGN app available today, but the road to Amazon's Appstore just got easier for many developers. What's less clear is whether those expanded horizons will lead to better or worse app experiences for users.