Aims at attracting more developers to its side

Jun 8, 2010 08:46 GMT  ·  By

Redmond-based software giant Microsoft recently announced a series of changes made to the Windows Phone Marketplace policies. According to the company, the new set of policies are set to govern the submission and certification process for applications meant for Windows Phone, and should attract more developers to its side. Both developers and end users should enjoy an enhanced Marketplace experience as soon as the new rules are put in place, Microsoft added.

Among the new Windows Phone Marketplace policies, we can count the annual registration fee of $99, which enables developers submit as many paid apps as they like, though only 5 free applications can be added to the storefront (a $19.99 fee will have to be paid for each free app after that). DreamSpark students will enjoy free registration, though the unlimited paid and 5 free apps rule applies to them too. The revenue share is of 70/30, while the business models range has been expanded, now including free, paid, freemium and ad-funded.

The new Windows Phone Marketplace policies also offer: - A new optional push notification service to help developers stay engaged with customers - A new optional Trial API - trials mean more customers try your app, and less likelihood that they return it. The length or type of trial is fully controlled by the developer - Developers manage their business with Marketplace via the self service portal http://developer.windowsphone.com - Payout takes place monthly for developers that have earned more than USD$200 worldwide - Developers can make ad funded applications - All applications go through a process of technical and content certification - Marketplace offers support for credit card commerce, and where available mobile operator billing.

According to Microsoft, developers will benefit from a new “worldwide distribution” option, which enables them to publish their applications to all available Marketplace markets. In other words, one will have to pay once and have the software solutions available to a much wider range of users out there. At the same time, Microsoft says that it will continue to publish policies, guidelines, and submission process details to developers, so as to offer them the possibility to understand how things work. Those who would like to take a look at the entire list of Windows Phone Marketplace policies should head over to this web page.

“We introduced our first Marketplace eight months ago and have already shown that there is demand for an app store that is both customer-centric AND developer friendly. Marketplace is evolving to give people a great selection of beautiful apps for Windows Phone 7 that we will take steps to ensure are high-quality and don’t introduce security or reliability issues. At the same time, we’re giving developers the respect they deserve in our use of transparent and uniform policies that still give developers the necessary information and flexibility to explore creative sales and marketing models. For Windows Phone 7, we’re keeping the basic tenets of our existing Marketplace philosophy and making a few enhancements for developers,” a recent post on The Windows Phone Developer Blog reads.