Update, Dec 20 (2:03 p.m. ET): Amazon has issued a statement saying the problem has been fixed.
What you need to know
- Apps and games installed from the Amazon Appstore are currently not working on Android 12 phones.
- The issue appears to stem from Amazon's DRM implementation.
- Amazon has yet to issue a fix for the problem, which began more than a month ago.
Google made Android 12 available for beta testing for several months before making it available to the general public. However, Amazon appears to have missed the opportunity to ensure that its Appstore is compatible with the most recent version of Android.
The Amazon Appstore is currently broken on Android 12 (via Liliputing). This means that apps and games downloaded from the online marketplace will not function on some of the best Android phones that have been upgraded to the OS, such as the Google Pixel 6 series and the Pixel 4a 5G.
A considerable number of users who have already upgraded to Android 12 took to Amazon's support forum in order to complain about the ongoing issue. The app library does not apparently show up on the Appstore app for some users as well.
The issue is said to be caused by Amazon's DRM implementation rather than the app itself. This affects both free and paid apps.
An Amazon staff has acknowledged the issue a month ago, saying "our technical team is aware of this issue and they are currently working on a resolution." However, the company has yet to roll out a fix for it.
In a statement to Android Central, the company said:
We are aware and working to resolve an issue impacting app performance and launches for the small number of Amazon Appstore users that have upgraded to Android 12 on their mobile devices. This issue does not impact Amazon Fire Tablets or Fire TV devices.
Users who have downloaded and installed apps from Amazon's app store and have not yet upgraded to Android 12 are advised to stick with their current OS version, as the retail giant appears to be ignoring the Appstore issue at the moment.
Update, Dec 20 (2:03 p.m. ET) ― Amazon is now rolling out a fix for the Appstore issue on Android 12
Amazon has issued a statement announcing a fix for this issue. The online retail giant said Amazon Appstore users can now use apps and games downloaded from that marketplace again.
An Amazon spokesperson gave the following statement to Android Central:
We have released a fix for an issue impacting app launches for Amazon Appstore customers that have upgraded to Android 12 on their mobile devices. We are contacting customers with steps to update their Appstore experience. We are sorry for any disruption this has caused.
To get the fix, you must download the latest version of the Amazon Appstore app via this link. You'll also need to sign out of the Appstore after installing the update, and then sign in back again.
Finally, open the updated Appstore, go to "My Apps", and then navigate to Updates. From there, you'll need to update each app you've downloaded from the online marketplace.
