Confirmed: Marketplace will be the only way to get apps on Windows Phone 7 Series
By Nilay Patel 
posted March 15th 2010 3:24PM
posted March 15th 2010 3:24PM
Update: Microsoft wanted us to clarify that enterprise customers will be able to deploy apps to employees outside the consumer-facing Marketplace -- details on that will be released in the future.
- Windows Phone Marketplace appears to take some of the best parts of the App Store and the Android Market and throw them together into a hodgepodge, but they've strayed a bit with the trial period system -- with the Marketplace, it's up to the developer to decide how the trial works. There are API hooks to let the developer manage the whole process, actually -- to quote Biggs, a game dev could end the trial after you've killed 50 trolls, for example. There's no additional download after the trial expires; the game just unlocks if you choose to buy it.
- Marketplace membership for developers still costs $99 a year, though Biggs says they're looking at tweaking the 5-app limit per account present in 6.5 -- whether that means they'll remove the limit altogether, though, we don't yet know.
- There are no fees for developers to update their apps, nor fees for users to download them.
- Speaking of user downloads, you'll be able to uninstall purchased apps and redownload them at a later time at your leisure -- the purchases are tied to your Live account, not your phone, so you can move between devices at will. That's a Microsoft policy that developers won't be able to override.
- If a dev wants to post a free, ad-supported app, they've only got two hurdles: the $99 fee and -- of course -- approval by Microsoft. For ad-supported apps specifically, the company will have some guidelines specifically targeted at making sure the ads are appropriate and germane.
- Microsoft's only dealing in real money here -- no points (though there's still an opportunity for direct carrier billing).
- Though there's some development synergy between Zune and WP7S at this point (with XNA, specifically), there's no ecosystem synergy beyond that -- different marketplaces for the developers to submit to and manage.
- You'll be able to browse and buy apps and games through the Zune desktop client on your PC.
- Though there's no way for end users to purchase and install apps outside of the Marketplace, Microsoft is naturally working on a solution for trialling apps on a limited number of devices; if we had to guess, it'll be something akin to Apple's ad hoc installation mode, but Charlie Kindel has said that it won't be available in the first release of the platform. For now, the only way to do it is to unlock devices one at a time through the developer portal, and Microsoft isn't talking about how many devices you'll be able to unlock on an account right now.
"the only official way to get apps on a Windows Phone 7 Series device"
Yeah, the only official way. If you install an app by other means, chances are they aren't going to give a shit.
Why don't they just change their name to Apple and be done with it!
Why I'll never use iTunes ever again:
*You'll be able to browse and buy apps and games through the Zune desktop client on your PC.
*Speaking of user downloads, you'll be able to uninstall purchased apps and redownload them at a later time at your leisure -- the purchases are tied to your Live account, not your phone, so you can move between devices at will. That's a Microsoft policy that developers won't be able to override."
Awesome awesome awesome awesome. Love Zune software.
hahaHAAA, in ur face poor little pc people and "we know better than apple"-idiots.
congrats to MS! ur winpho team seems to be on top of stuff, not just design-wise.
People wouldn't buy a computer that could only run applications bought through Microsoft (or Apple). Why are they willing to put up with it on their phone?
@jjd
because its secondary as long as the overall package feels right to the majority of customers.
and it might even be mandatory if you want to maintain a certain quality control and ensure the integrity of your device for the majority of customers (...so my gradmo, who loves her iphone versus a geek who can do their own maintenance locally..)
the question should much rather be: why would any company build a phone for geeks/nerds only? (except google, who didnt get the memo).
@fuesse I'm not sure why your "maintain a certain quality control and ensure the integrity of your device" position doesn't apply to desktop and laptop computers as well.
All I know is that I want to be able to buy whatever applications I want for my computer, whether it fits with my computer vendor's business plan or not. And it's the same with my phone.
@jjd
FWIW, the PC system for general computing has been pretty horrible up til now. Most people's PC's do way too much and are way too complex. They'll readily accept malicious software because, well, they will pretty much accept any software. If you're a geek, you have a perfectly running machine that does everything you want. If you're not, you probably have something running at about 1/2 its intended speed, loaded with crap, and generally a frustration to use.
It's much easier to accept your PC at home running like utter crap than it is your phone. People want their phone to come out of their pocket and work, plain and simple. As we saw with WinMO, a phone can only be as complex as it is simple. Once it becomes a burden to use, or becomes slow, nobody wants it.
@jjd
is does. but of course its different and more complex. just "come on over" and try OSX and u know how it translates.
the other important thing is: A PHONE IS JUST NOT A COMPUTER REPLACEMENT (and most people like it that way).
If MS wants to rock for business men, they should make Citrix work on WS7: a real killer app for many business men in these days of high powered mobile devices.
@Wekkel
r u on their paylist?
citrix & flash... hmmm, i'm not so sure.
The only thing that I liked here as the fact that you can uninstall an app and then download it again without re-buying it (reminds me of Steam). For everything else, doesn't it remind you of an iPhone?
After owning an Android phone for 6 months now, this is certainly the way to go.
Apple, Palm, and now Microsoft have all figured out.
MS is a day late, and a dollar short.
If I wanted an IPhone, I would have bought one. Those looking for simplicity or "cool" already have an IPhone. Microsoft is not going to be able to steal marketshare from Apple. They failed with Zune and will fail again.
By doing this, they are just alienating what I suspect is a large part their current user base.
@citanX
I wonder how the business community (read: MS's biggest customer segment) will respond to this MTV/trippy UI.
iPhone's UI isn't crazy, it's slick, but not crazy.
I wonder how many suits want the zany looking Zune UI for their phone.... Keep in mind they think the BB is actually.. cool
I can't imagine the angry lynch mob that would form here if Apple pulled what MS is pulling with WinMo 6.5 to 7..
They announced 6.5 *last year*.. launched Windows Marketplace for Mobile a few months ago and still are planning on launching products like the HD2 with no upgrade path to the new OS or the new Phone Marketplace app store etc.
If Apple were to come out and say that the 3GS, iPod Touch etc.. were all now legacy devices and no upgrade path to the new OS was provided (even at a cost).. and that there was a new different app store that which wasn't compatible with any existing device there would be deafening cries of 'Fail!!'
@nothingreal
Very true. That is the one thing that I've really enjoyed in my short time of owning Apple products (iPhones). I had the 2G and it was upgraded, for free, all the way to the latest OS with zero delay. No waiting, no hoping, no speculation. Other than the fact that I upgraded to a 3GS for the better hardware, I've basically had the same phone for over 2 years now, except that it has continually improved with every update. Usually it's just "buy a new device".
I'm loving this. Microsoft has finally seen the light and went with the Apple model of quality instead of Android model of pointless anarchy.
Microsoft finally realized that the consumers with money who want their shit to work properly are far more valuable than some loud blog nerds who want to "sideload" crappy apps.
It's a big "F-U" to the status quo which has failed on mobile platforms which do not follow the Apple's model of quality assurance.
@(Unverified)
Quality? Man, what are you talking about? There are thousands upon thousands of apps that are absolute crap on the iPhone. Yes - there are many good ones. But Apples success is not just directly related to the app store (they sold millions of phones before the app store even existed) and there is no evidence to suggest that if they used a slightly less facist model that they wouldn't be as successful.
I think the Web OS model is best personally: like the iPhone only you don't need to jailbreak your phone to put non-store apps on it. But it is still more difficult to side-load then buy from the store - thus 90% of people will still buy from the store. But for the geeks / enthusiasts out there they are free to side-load apps.
Why is that such a difficult concept for you cultists to understand? Apples (and now MS) takes away your freedom and you make up excuses and say that it is a GOOD thing. Unbelievable.....
Please Steve - take my freedom! I'll throw in my dignity as well!
Fucking you, Microsoft. You've taken a good idea, and worked backwards from it. Its one thing to strip out features, Its another to strip out functionality. I hope WP7 blows up in your faces.
Thank you Microsoft, you have no solidified my eventual transition to android. I've owned a WiMo device for the last 5 years or so and that time has now come to an end.
@zachavm yep Android is the future for our poor sanity in this greedy industry.
@zachavm
love it. you have been with winmo for 5 yrs.
you must love pain! i guess thats what haters do.
unbelievable though anyway.
@zachavm
You've owned a WinMo for the last 5 years? Good god man, what are you Amish?
@zachavm
I've been on MinMo for the last 5 years too, and I know how to make it work for me. I think anyone who really likes WinMo will probably end up moving the Android since it represents most of the things that attracted me to WinMo in the first place.
@fuesse I guess you guys never spent much time on xda ^_^
http://www.xda-developers.com/
I also have been on WinMo for a long time but now I think it's time to switch to android.
MSFT and APPLE should just get married and have kids.
I am sick and tired of these bullies.
I kind of don't get the reaction. we all know that we as gadget geeks, do not represent a significant margin of the population buying smartphones.
most people don't even care about where they get their apps, as long as its straight forward. I think that's what Microsoft is aiming at.
@Raio "Microsoft wanted us to clarify that enterprise customers will be able to deploy apps to employees outside the consumer-facing Marketplace -- details on that will be released in the future. " They are aiming at milking it in everyones faces.
I'm not happy about this too~
come on guys.... if we make enough noise, may be we can get Microsoft to drop this like the stupid 3 application limit in Windows 7 Starter edition.....
I see this as being a way to enforce a lot of carrier demands as well. Tethering probably won't be available for AT&T WP7 phones and Verizon will charge you for the App. Most people won't mind because they won't know any better.
As an example I see the official SKYPE application is not available from the OVI Store in the USA but is available from Skype website so there is an alternate way to get the application. I can see restrictions by carrier, by country and by many other things...
this is the way its gonna be... and you will be forced to use IE on winphone just like apple does safari.
I kind of don't get the reaction, since what I'm seen behind them if I ain't one of them staff to find a geek uproar to find everything around it a.k.a. the restrictions as the obstacle course: who shall find the crack, the opening, loophole, way to over the restrictions in this area and by who?
Simply crack the details and measure them yourselves and work on that would seems pretty unusually unless you find the real answer to that amount of countless hacking around
Which seems to be the real answer to this since they known there will countless hacks for breaking that first detail already said, and another countless hacks for the second, so on and so on, so they are just waiting for the ulimate hack for that to appear of that just appear out of nowhere
@BoomUnknown making sense now that the geek uproar is here and the company is backwards:if geeks made the company then have you ever played the classic Age of War 1 and 2, Castle Crashers, and Alien Homid, then who build wants to drop while the geeks want to move froward get the thing now?
(Example: would one geek do all of the hack and claim the prize themselves he/she for this or would all do the hacking themselves?)
Well, on the bright side I can't see Microsoft denying an app because an icon needed to be adjusted by a couple pixels.
But seriously, this is a bit disappointing.
@Jerome36
Apple has about 200,000 mobile apps and WinPhone has about 20.
You can bet MS won't be 'denying' any Apps for a looooong time.
Glad to have more competition in the smart phone market, this will definitely benefits all the customers. Bravo!
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http://www.skinjamonline.com
so in a nutshell, they do it the apple way again? haha
@shizzledmg
yup.
they 'took a step back' and realized where the industry was heading.
something everyone else already knew.
this is getting worst than I thought. no multi-tasking, no way to get an app other than by marketplace... as a developer, I'll stick to android. bye bye M$ and WinMo, we had a real nice time cooking together, but this has gone too far.
buzzkill
n.
someone or something that ruins enjoyment or pleasure;
See also: This announcement.
And what about specific business applications developped by IT departments ? It would be VERY wrong to put those apps on the Marketplace...
What will do my 300 WinMo users to get their new business app update ? Using the marketplace may be Apple's reality, but it doesn't work for business. I'm sur Microsoft has some solution somewhere.
I was wondering what the deal-breaker for me would be with a Windows 7 phone and here it is. Time to stop holding out and get something a heck of a lot more open.
Great. So Microsoft is taking Apple's approach of removing things that have been in the phone for years. I can remember installing a homebrew Java app from an ancient black & white phone on shitty WAP. The iPhone can't even do this.
Installing unauthorised apps is one of the reasons I liked Windows Mobile. I guess i'll stick to either Android or Symbian.
Windows Phone 7 Emulator Unlocked. Now users can access taskmanager and a File Explorer ?????
http://digg.com/d31M2Y8