Windows Marketplace now has approximately 71,000 apps to choose from

Still well behind the Apple App Store and the Android Market, Windows Marketplace is now up to an app count of 70,784. Each day, roughly 250 apps are being added to the store. Last year, an average 91 apps per day were added showing the increasing acceptance of the platform by developers. In the last 90 days alone, 28,503 apps were added. The total added in the last 30 days is 6,936 apps. On January 22nd, the Marketplace hit the 60,000 app mark while the 50,000 app plateau was reached on December 27th. At the current pace, the 100,000 app benchmark will be hit in early July. That takes into account a slowdown that has seen the average number of new apps added drop from 375 in January to its current pace.

Not every app is available everywhere. For example, of the nearly 71,000 apps in the Marketplace, 59,687 can be downloaded in the U.S., 57,000 in the U.K., 54.399 in France and 52,346 in India. If the quality of apps can be determined by the number of times an app is rated, than the quality of the inventory in the Marketplace is getting better. Looking at the UK marketplace, 8.5% of the listed apps have been rated 5 or more times compared with 6.6% 6 weeks ago.

The largest category of apps in the Windows Marketplace are "Entertainment" apps with 18% of the total followed by "Tools/Productivity" at  14%, "Games" at 13% and  "Books and Reference" at 12%. The top four make up 47% of apps in the Windows Marketplace. A vast majority of apps in the online store, 65%, are free while 24% require you to buy them. The remaining 11% are paid apps with a free trial.

For the Windows Marketplace to become a challenger to the Android Market and the App Store, there will need to be more acceptance of the platform overall by smartphone buyers. Back in late 2009, before it was launched, no one could have predicted the impact the Motorola DROID would have on the Android OS and thus the Android Market. That type of dramatic impact in a handset is what Windows Phone needs.

source: AAWP via WMPoweruser