Windows Marketplace update - Todd Brix from Microsoft talks about the mobile app store

Microsoft had four announcements today for Windows Mobile fans. Todd Brix, Senior Director for Mobile Platform Services Product Management at Microsoft (there’s a mouthful), revealed the details at the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference.

Probably the biggest announcement was that Windows Marketplace will definitely cater for older versions of WinMo. Initial news that it would only be available for versions 6.5 and later caused something approaching an uproar. Now support for devices running 6.0 and 6.1 has been announced. Microsoft claims this means there will be 30 million devices capable of accessing the Markplace at launch.

Todd Brix also announced that July 27th is the  opening date for app submissions. Check out our report here for details on what kind of apps Microsoft declared “bannable”. The third announcement was for the “Business Center” in Windows. It’s a special section that will only host enterprise and business apps. Check out the sample shots below:

And finally, Microsoft will be running a Developer Contest. The details will be unveiled when application submissions open on the 27th.

From the Microsoft blog:

“In terms of milestones, I’m pleased to report that Windows Marketplace is on schedule to open for submissions in 29 supported countries on July 27th. We’re already working with a wide range of leading developers for both business and consumer applications and will soon be able to make available a new wave of applications that will be ready for download when Windows Marketplace launches with Windows Mobile 6.5 in the fall… We’re working hard to create a new experience for mobile users and developers alike; where users can easily discover and confidently purchase and download applications for work, life or play and developers feel good about the submission process and are able to reach a new market for their mobile applications.”

What we think?

Here’s an interesting tid-bit from PC World. It seems that while Microsoft is claiming it has 20,000 apps ready for launch, very few of those will be ready for launch. The restrictions on apps are pretty severe, and Microsoft is going all out on quality testing. Recent reports indicate that WinMo users will have closer to 600 apps at launch. That seems pretty limited to me, and I hope that rumour isn’t true. If you look at more recent app store launches, the number of apps available on launch is much higher. I would think that Microsoft will have more apps than that, considering how important apps have become in the mobile OS market.