Microsoft's App Marketplace on Oct. 6
Microsoft seems to be well set to launch its Windows Marketplace for mobiles in the next week. The product, which has been in the works for quite some time, is finally ready for launch on Oct. 6 - the day Windows Mobile 6.5 too will be made official.
The news was revealed by Microsoft's Todd Brix in a blog post. Brix also added that the software does have some issues and glitches, which he believes, would be sorted by the time it is launched. So, more than a year after the launch of the Apple App Store, Microsoft is ready to fire its first salvo against Apple. In fact, the war of words has already begun as apparent from a line in the blog post, which takes a dig at Apple's app approval process by saying that Microsoft would be creating a "more open, transparent and rewarding processes for developers and ISVs (independent software vendors)."
Having said that, developers might want to note that there some restrictions on the kind of apps you can code for WinMo devices. These include VoIP, SMS, or MMS related applications and apps that change the default browser, search client, or media player. Oh and no support for Java apps either. It remains to be seen how well Microsoft goes about the App approval process.
Another pertinent thing to note is that starting Oct. 6, only WinMo 6.5 laden devices would be able to use the Windows Mobile Marketplace. Only in November would this come to older WinMo 6 and WinMo 6.5 editions. By then, there would be a PC version in place as well.
