Microsoft is still directly funding app developers

posted by Victor H. / Apr 06, 2012, 3:46 AM

Microsoft is still directly funding app developers

Microsoft might already have over 80,000 applications in the Windows Phone Marketplace, but when the number grows past a couple of tens of thousands, what starts to matter is not quantity, but quality. And for some of the must-have apps that could make or break a Windows Phone handset, Microsoft is still directly funding developers.

It could cost Redmond somewhere between $60,000 and $600,000 for some of the most popular apps out there. For example, Microsoft approached Foursquare and offered it funding to make its app available on Windows Phone. Foursquare business development head Holger Luedorf admits that if it wasn’t for that incentive, the company would “probably not” have built a version of its app for the platform.

The Cheezburger Network, known for its entertaining websites, was approached by Microsoft to bring its funny pictures of cats on Windows Phone. “They made it very easy for us. They took care of everything,” Cheezburger Network CEO Ben Huh said.

And the list of developers and companies approached by Microsoft just goes on and on.

We are by no means satisfied with our catalog

“We are by no means satisfied with our catalog,” senior WP marketing manager Casey McGee said. “That’s something we can get better at, and do better at, every day.”

McGee didn’t point out what’s the exact incentives Redmond offers, but it’s clear that unlike Apple and Google that don’t pay developers, Microsoft needs to give that extra push in order to see its WP platform lift off.

The simple principle of going after the most audience is logically at work here. But interestingly, developers are starting to slowly show interest in the Windows Phone platform. It’s been nearly a year and a half, and some dev firms report that a small number of companies approach them asking for apps on Microsoft’s platform. We’ll see how this works out, but having a third player in the mobile sphere should only benefit competition and what users get.

source: NY Times

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17 Comments

1. Bluesky02

Posts: 1439; Member since: Dec 05, 2011

This is a big opportunity for new and small developers who can get fundings they needed. However this is a temporary measures, i believe for atleast 2yrs till WP start selling off.

posted on Apr 06, 2012, 4:05 AM 2

2. joeymk

Posts: 101; Member since: Jan 26, 2012

Do you remember XBOX, and then XBOX 360. Same story, Windows Phone 8 will take the 2-th place.

posted on Apr 06, 2012, 4:43 AM 2

6. remixfa

Posts: 14605; Member since: Dec 19, 2008

the 360 is the #1 gaming platform in the world right now...

posted on Apr 06, 2012, 6:59 AM 2

11. RageQuit

Posts: 44; Member since: Sep 05, 2011

1st no the Wii is with close to double the units sold. 2nd. Oh we have sold a whole 3million more units thatn teh PS3 thats SO MUCH MORE! no its not, 3M is prettymuchn no diffence when its 65M vs 62M. PC Gaming is better anyway.

posted on Apr 06, 2012, 3:25 PM 2

13. remixfa

no one counts the Wii as a gaming platform anymore. It may have the most "units sold", but there is more software/attachments sold for the 360 than the PS3 and wii combined. 360 > PS3. I have them both. My PS3 plays God of War, Uncharted, and LBP... but mostly it just plays my blurays. For 99% of games, the 360 works better.

posted on Apr 06, 2012, 4:12 PM 1

14. JeffdaBeat unregistered

Gaming is a bit different than smartphones. Gaming, you have a platform for a few years without having to switch to a new one. Two years in the smartphone industry is an eternity. If Microsoft doesn't start convincing people they are better than Google and Apple then I'm not sure what they're going to do...

posted on Apr 07, 2012, 7:55 AM 1

19. RageQuit

PC> 360 I stopped taking consles seriously when i saw the kinect. For a 99% of games my PC is cheaper, or offers somehing more like mods. My Xbox is only used for COD now.

posted on Apr 09, 2012, 10:04 AM 0

15. cripton805

Posts: 1485; Member since: Mar 18, 2012

No thanks. I dont want to keep upgrading my PC just to play the small list of games PC has to offer. Id rather pay once and just pop discs.

posted on Apr 07, 2012, 10:36 AM 0

9. TechyMexican

Posts: 17; Member since: Jan 02, 2012

Xbox 360 is number one right now. :P

posted on Apr 06, 2012, 12:31 PM 1

12. RageQuit

No, its really not.

posted on Apr 06, 2012, 3:26 PM 1

3. eaxvac

Posts: 328; Member since: Jan 15, 2012

Slow and steady wins the race, check out Xbox's success story from the incrumbent Nitendo, Sony.

posted on Apr 06, 2012, 4:51 AM 0

4. Droid_X_Doug

Posts: 5993; Member since: Dec 22, 2010

The only thing weeping WP7/7.5/whatever relevant in the smartphone market is apps. Don't believe me, check out RIM for what happens to a company with outdated hardware and no apps. At least MS gets the part about quality apps being available for their OS.

posted on Apr 06, 2012, 6:12 AM 0

5. MickDM

Posts: 63; Member since: Nov 29, 2011

what was that...a positive nokia/ms/wp/vzw note at the end of a vh article...ijs...

posted on Apr 06, 2012, 6:34 AM 1

7. remixfa

good. keep pushing app development. Sometimes they come to you, sometimes you have to entice them. As an end user, you should be happy MS is doing this. As an app developer, getting in WP7 now would be a smart thing. There may not be a big % of marketshare, but there also isnt 500k apps like in android and iOS, which makes it easier to stand out among the sea of logos. Becoming popular early on is an easy way to stay popular as the OS grows. That said, MS needs to talk to OMGPOP/Zynga and get draw something and their other games on the OS. I actually had a customer yesterday walk in and ask if she could trade in her lumia for "any" android phone so she could play Draw Something... even though she has never had a phone that could play it... addicts. lol

posted on Apr 06, 2012, 7:02 AM 2

8. Bluesky02

Agree with remixfa and joeymk. Same for X360 which still gets DLC exclusives map packs.

posted on Apr 06, 2012, 8:49 AM 0

10. snowgator

Posts: 3617; Member since: Jan 19, 2011

I think the growth of WP is equal parts Apollo launch and App developers seeing this ecosystem as a great money source. Microsoft is trying to get the apps in place. I sure would like to see more variety in selections.

posted on Apr 06, 2012, 2:07 PM 0

16. jack1059

Posts: 72; Member since: Mar 31, 2012

Really this is why I hate MS. They simply use their cash / influence to push their way up the que. "Hey developers, heres some cash. Just make it look like you love us. Whoo hoo, we're great. Look at how many apps we have now."