Australia first market ex US for PayPal developer program

By Peter Dinham
Thursday, 09 July 2009 14:21

Market

Australia has become the first market outside the United States chosen by PayPal to roll-out its developer program, with local developers now able to access a range of technical tools, applications and online payment resources free of charge through a new Australian developer portal.

Launching the program in Sydney today, PayPal Australia’s senior manager, technical engineering, Spiro Rokos, said the program gave developers an opportunity to build their business in new market segments, and he said PayPal’s solutions met a wide range of payment processing needs, from enabling charities to raise funds online to helping local schools collect fees.

Rokos said the developer program included free technical tools and resources via a dedicated developer portal , PayPal developer certification and a series of training seminars called Developer Days.

“We’re committed to building a local community of developers. Merchants rely on developers for advice on payments processing which is why we have created new tools and resources and launched a local certification program to help developers tap into new revenue opportunities.”

The certification, which has been customised for the Australian market, enables developers to gain PayPal product expertise, with accredited developers listed on a certified developer directory to connect them with potential customers and provide access to potential sales leads.

PayPal is also hosting the first Australian Developer Days from 20 to 24 July, a series of technical seminars that gives developers the opportunity to learn more about PayPal’s solutions and how they can become certified.

PayPal says Nerada Stern, CEO of inDemand, a Melbourne-based company specialising in e-commerce solutions, was the first Australian developer to become PayPal certified as part of the US developer program.
 
Stern said today that the educational materials, technical library and certification process were exceptional and, she added, “the PayPal team has made a great effort to keep us up to date with improvements.”

“I’m looking forward to the Australian certification process as it means we can apply local product knowledge for the benefit of Australian clients.”