canonical: https://jentic.com/apis/openchannel.io/openchannel

# OpenChannel Market API

OpenChannel Market API is the backend for running an app marketplace: it manages the apps and their versions, the developer and user accounts behind them, installs and ownership, reviews, and the transactions and payouts that settle sales. An agent can list and search the catalog, publish or update an app version, record an install, and moderate reviews. It fits teams that operate a third-party app store and want to automate listing and lifecycle tasks.

## For AI agents

Manage marketplace apps, versions, accounts, installs, reviews, and transactions in an OpenChannel-powered app store.

## Scope

Does not build the storefront UI or run the app runtime itself. Use it to manage marketplace apps, versions, accounts, installs, reviews, and transactions through the OpenChannel backend.

## Capabilities

- List, search, and retrieve apps in the marketplace catalog
- Create, publish, and version apps and their status
- Record app ownership through installs and uninstalls
- Create, retrieve, and moderate app reviews
- Manage developer and user accounts
- Read transactions and marketplace statistics

## Use cases

### Catalog Browsing and Search

An agent surfaces the marketplace catalog by calling GET /apps and narrows it with GET `/apps/textSearch` when a shopper describes what they want. This lets a storefront assistant answer 'what apps do you have for X' without a custom search layer.

Example prompt: Call GET /apps, then refine with GET `/apps/textSearch` when the user gives a keyword

### App Publishing Workflow

A developer-tools agent moves an app forward by calling POST `/apps/{appId}/publish` once a version is ready. This automates the promotion step that would otherwise wait on a manual review dashboard.

Example prompt: Publish the prepared app with POST `/apps/{appId}/publish` and confirm its status

### Install Tracking

When a user adds an app, an agent records ownership with POST `/ownership/install` so entitlements and billing stay in sync. It removes the need to reconcile installs from event logs later.

Example prompt: Register the install with POST `/ownership/install` for the user and app

### Review Moderation

A moderation agent reads new reviews with GET /reviews and removes ones that violate policy with the review delete endpoint. This keeps the storefront clean without a person watching the queue.

Example prompt: Read pending reviews with GET /reviews and delete any that break policy

## Key endpoints

| Method | Path | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| GET | `/apps` | List apps in the marketplace |
| GET | `/apps/textSearch` | Search apps by text |
| POST | `/apps/{appId}/publish` | Publish an app |
| POST | `/ownership/install` | Record an app install |
| GET | `/reviews` | List reviews |

## Key resources

- **Apps and Versions** — List, create, publish, and version marketplace apps
- **Ownership and Accounts** — Record installs and manage developer and user accounts
- **Reviews and Transactions** — Moderate reviews and read transactions and statistics

## Why Jentic

- **Setup:** Wiring the OpenChannel Market API by hand means setting up Basic authentication, learning its 72 operations across apps, versions, ownership, reviews, and accounts, and handling pagination and errors against https://market.openchannel.io/v2. Through Jentic you install once, import the OpenChannel Market API from the API Directory, store the credential once, and your agent calls it.
- **Permission scoping:** Because you run Jentic One yourself, you decide which OpenChannel operations the agent may call. Allow read-only catalog access, for example, and leave publishing, account, and transaction operations out of the allowed set unless you add them.
- **Credential handling:** Your OpenChannel credentials are stored once, encrypted, by your own Jentic One instance and injected at execution time. They never enter the agent's prompt, logs, or context.
- **Discovery method:** Agents search Jentic by intent, such as 'list apps in the marketplace' or 'moderate a review', and Jentic returns the matching OpenChannel operation with its input schema so the agent calls the right endpoint.

## Related APIs

- **Shopify API** — Shopify runs a commerce storefront; OpenChannel runs the app marketplace behind a platform.
- **Paddle API** — Paddle handles billing and tax for software sales; OpenChannel manages the app listings themselves.
- **Gumroad API** — Gumroad sells individual digital products; OpenChannel powers a multi-developer app marketplace.

## FAQ

### What can an AI agent do with the OpenChannel Market API?

An agent can list and search the app catalog, create and publish app versions, record installs, moderate reviews, manage developer and user accounts, and read transactions. It covers the day-to-day operations of running an app marketplace.

### What authentication does the OpenChannel Market API use?

The specification declares Basic authentication through its basicAuth scheme, so requests carry credentials in the standard Authorization header. Through Jentic those credentials are held by your own instance and supplied at execution time.

### Can I search the marketplace catalog through the API?

Yes. GET /apps returns the catalog and GET `/apps/textSearch` narrows it by keyword. A storefront assistant can pair the two to answer questions about what apps are available.

### Is there an MCP server for the OpenChannel Market API?

You do not need a separate MCP server to use the OpenChannel Market API with an agent. Through Jentic One, the self-hosted execution layer, your agent calls the operations directly after you import them from the API Directory. Install Jentic One from github.com/jentic/jentic-one to run it yourself.

### How does my agent discover OpenChannel operations through Jentic?

Agents search Jentic by intent, such as 'list apps in the marketplace', and Jentic returns the matching operation with its input schema. The agent then calls the right endpoint without reading the full reference.

### Can I limit what my agent is allowed to do with the OpenChannel Market API?

Yes. Because you run Jentic One yourself, you decide which OpenChannel operations the agent may call. You can allow read-only catalog access, for example, and leave publishing and account changes out of the allowed set unless you add them, so the agent acts only within the operations you permit.