Amazon Appstore downloads grow 500% as Kindle Fire sales burn up

Amazon Appstore downloads have increased in tandem with the amount of Kindle Fire tablets the online retailer is selling.

"App downloads in the Appstore have grown more than 500 percent over the previous year," said Amazon in a press release.

The correlation between app downloads and Kindle Fire and Kindle Fire HD purchases is more than a coincidence, according to GigaOM.

The rise in Amazon's tablet sales are thought to be one of the main reasons that the Amazon Appstore has experienced tremendous growth over the last twelve months.

Although Kindle Fires are Android-based devices, they cannot download apps via Google Play. Their restriction to the Amazon Appstore is likely to have helped drive numbers up.

More Kindle Fires waiting to be unwrapped

Amazon should be able to maintain its Appstore download growth thanks to strong sales of its tablets on Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

The Amazon Kindle had its best week ever last month, with Kindle Fire HD becoming the store's No. 1 most gifted item, according to the company.

Amazon doesn't disclose hard numbers, but Cyber Monday, and in particular a $129 deal on last year's Kindle Fire, helped its e-reader line reach its biggest single-day sales record.

Of course, the recent spike in app downloads doesn't account for all of the Kindle Fires waiting to be gifted over the holidays.

The unwrapping of new Kindle Fires around the globe on Dec. 25 should give the Appstore another increase in app downloads in 2013, whether or not there's an Amazon phone.

Via GigaOM