While others debate standards, more than 30,000 developers are using Amazon Web Services (AWS) to create innovative applications on top of the Amazon.com platform, earning referral fees in the process. In fact, Amazon.com is helping lead what Web services experts call the next phase in Web services development: platform providers openly granting third parties front-door access to their databases and functionality. Many developers hope that other platform provider (auctions, shipping, weather info, mapping info) will recognize Amazon.com's success and wholeheartedly open up their own databases for innovation as well.