September 2nd, 2008 by Arjan Olsder Posted in Distribution | No Comments »
Following Google’s announcement, Microsoft is now also looking to launch an App Store. This brainwave clearly originates from Apple’s success in the mobile games and applications market.
Marketing mobile games and applications has always been a problem for the Windows Mobile platform. There are thousands of applications and mobile games available, but on general hardly any operator offers a decent portfolio. The lack of a good portfolio means that consumers have to start searching for portals like Handango, which they often never heard off. Launching an App Store that is easy to find will certainly break open the market toward consumers.
Though this news is based on speculation, the indicators are clear. Microsoft is actively looking for employees to fill and maintain a mobile portal called Skymarket, a v1 marketplace for Windows Mobile. The service is expected to go live with the release of Windows Mobile 7.