Amazon Payments needed to be an Associate?

Is this necessary just for referrals?

[UserFriendly]

I'm writing a set of PHP functions that allow simple calls to create HTML markup that displays Amazon.com products based on product ASIN ID, or by search terms.

What I need to know is, why does the ECS manual state that Amazon Associates must register with Amazon Payments to make money through ECS referrals?

I followed the link to register with Amazon Payments, and the page I was presented with talked about registering to become a seller, and stated the need for a US-based credit card and phone number. I'm not based in the US, and I didn't think you needed to be to refer customers to Amazon.com as part of the Associates programme.

I don't want to sell my own products, I just want to create links to Amazon.com products and tag the links with my Associate tracking tag.

Have I misunderstood, or is this really not possible without registering as a US-based seller?

[Quadrille]

You must be at the wrong page. Amazon.com has a huge affiliate program (as do all the national Amazons, too).

Look for the 'Join Associates' link at the foot of the index page.

They also have a forum for discussion of how to operate it successfully.

[UserFriendly]

I'm already a member of Associates, and I'm already using the ready-made links that Amazon provide.

What I'm talking about is the ECS that is part of the AWS. ECS allows you to query Amazon's data server and generate custom advertising links from their content. The documentation for ECS states that anyone, vendor or Associate, using ECS needs to be registered with Amazon Payments.

I wondered if any Amazon ECS veterans could shed any light on this requirement? Was it once a requirement, but now Associates is an all-in-one package that no longer requires separate Amazon Payments registration? Or is this still necessary to see commission from ECS-generated links?

[Beagle]

Have you tried asking in the forum set up specifically for AWS/ECS? I tried looking around for an answer there, but it's over my head.

Could it possibly have something to do with the fact that not all of the AWS/ECS services are free? Maybe they need a way to be able to charge you for any paid services you use?

The AWS forum used to be part of the Associates forum, but it has so many options now for so many kinds of people (associates, vendors, sellers...) that it has its own forum.

[edited by: Beagle at 11:07 pm (utc) on April 30, 2007]

[UserFriendly]

I'm finding the Amazon ECS route very confusing. The information pages available all seems to contradict each other. Some mention Amazon Payments, others don't; some seem to state that Associates only earn commission if they use ECS to create a shopping cart, while forum postings seem to suggest that the DetailPageURL will work so long as it's tagged with the AssociateTag (and the visitor then buys something). It could be a lot clearer.

Thanks for your help. I'll ask in the Amazon forums.