14 DAY TRIAL // After launching a handful of Windows Phone devices, Nokia and Microsoft plan to focus their resource on creating the ecosystem in which these devices should be integrated.
Unfortunately, Windows Phone Marketplace barely exceeds 70,000 apps, which is nowhere near Apple App Store and Google Play’s almost half million apps.
This is why Nokia and Microsoft decided to try and claw back market share from its competitors by investing in mobile app development.
Today, both companies officially announced they would each spend up to €9 Million ($12 Million) into a new mobile application development program at Aalto University during the next three years.
The main goal of the AppCampus program is the development of innovative mobile applications for the Windows Phone operating system, and Nokia mobile platforms, including Symbian and Series 40.
“An essential part of Aalto University's mission is to strengthen Finland's competitiveness. We are pleased to host this initiative, which concretely boosts utilization of new knowledge and skills in creation of new entrepreneurial ventures,” concluded Tuula Teeri, president of Aalto University.
The AppCampus program is set to kick off in May 2012, and will be led and managed by Aalto University. Nokia and Microsoft have chosen this university given its reputation as a “hotbed of new startup companies.”
With AppCampus, Microsoft and Nokia plan to attract thousands of app proposals from students and entrepreneurs from around the globe.
“AppCampus offers an unprecedented opportunity for entrepreneurs to put their ideas into practice and create world-class mobile products. We want to turn a new leaf in the mobile industry and foster Finland's role as a center of excellence for mobile technology. Such investment into early-stage concepts has rarely been seen in this sector, and this demonstrates how highly both Nokia and Microsoft value Finnish mobile expertise,” said Klaus Holse, president, Microsoft Western Europe.