Avangate targets small developers managing online subscriptions, downloads

There are plenty of e-commerce platform options for small companies looking to sell physical goods, like shoes or pet toys or whatever. But what if you're a small developer or digital content creation company looking to create a direct sales channel for downloads off your Web site?

One option is Avangate, which calls itself a "unified cloud commerce" company aimed at enabling companies that are selling software (or some other sort of digital content) as a service. 

Although Avangate's name is associated with some pretty big companies like Kaspersky and BitDefender, it has a specific offering meant for startups and companies with fewer than 100 employees.  

One example is Metaio, a small 65-person company that develops an augmented reality platform (think Google Glass) and related digital content. It software lets you do things like add virtual furniture into a photograph or overlay other digital content into cameras in real time. The developer has some pretty big clients including IKEA and LEGO, but it wanted to enable a broader community to download components -- without having to worry about the management of these downloads.

To help, Metaio opted for SkyCommerce, which is Avangate's offering for helping software companies manage multi-channel sales.

During the past year, the company has increased its online sales globally by roughly 30 percent. According to a spokesman, the United States is its most successful market: orders there have increased by 600 percent. Metaio has also been able to extend into new countries, including the Philippines, South Korea and China. The company figures it now reaches an audience of 50,000 augmented reality developers.