14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has announced this year’s app submission deadlines for the Microsoft Store, emphasizing that developers must upload their new titles and updates before these dates.
Technically, Microsoft experiences a traffic increase on the Microsoft Store during the holidays, mostly thanks to new device activations, but also because more users have the time to explore the offering for their PCs.
At the same time, granting access to the Microsoft Store for new apps and games takes place at a slower pace during the holidays because of the time off for a number of employees, so each year, the software giant rolls out submission deadlines to make sure all devs send their titles and get them approved before the holidays.
2018 deadlines
In today’s announcement, Microsoft says that the deadline for Thanksgiving is November 13, while for Christmas, it’s December 13. Submit your apps to the Microsoft store before December 14 to have your app show up on the Microsoft Store before the New Year.
“The holidays are right around the corner and to take advantage of the holiday traffic increases we see in Microsoft Store, you’ll want to update or submit your app or game no later than Monday, November 13th for Thanksgiving (US) and Thursday, December 13th for the Christmas holiday. You can see the full list of submission deadlines below,” Microsoft explains.
“Updating or submitting your app or game early ensures that they will be available during the holiday season!”
Needless to say, games are probably the titles getting most of the attention during the holidays, as playing games is obviously the preferred activity for many users on their free time.
However, all app updates must be sent before these deadlines, otherwise they may remain in the queue until early 2019 when the approval rate returns to the normal level.
