Staples has launched its App Center, an online marketplace for cloud-based business applications. The center allows users to purchase and manage apps in one place, through an administrative console and a consolidated bill.

"Staples' vision is to provide small businesses with all the products they need to succeed, including the best offerings from the evolving cloud computing market," said Peter Scala, senior vice president, Merchandising, Online Marketplace.

The App Center features cloud applications from service providers like Google, Carbonite, Mozy, Box, Symantec, McAfee, and Brother, along with other developers and more on the way.

Apps can be searched by category. Users can also get recommendations, perform feature-by-feature comparisons and review product profiles.

The marketplace's dashboard lets users access all their apps with one login and perform administrative tasks, like adding approved users, upgrading apps or reviewing key usage data.

For billing administration, customers are charged monthly with one consolidated bill from Staples, with the ability to review line item details on past invoices.
 

According to the retailer, most available apps come with free trials and monthly subscriptions that can be cancelled at any time.