Pulse2 Technology and Social Media News » Microsoft Windows Marketplace

Now You Need Windows Phone 7.5 To Access Marketplace

Amit Chowdhry — Wed, 23 May 2012 16:11:58 +0000

This afternoon Microsoft is going to make it required for you to be running on Windows Phone 7.5 to download, buy, update, or review apps on Marketplace. This change applies to the phone and web Marketplace storefronts. Most phones already run on Windows Phone 7.5, which launched last fall so most of you will not notice anything different. However if you phone has an older version of the Windows Phone operating system, you will soon start seeing an error message. If you want to update your Windows Phone version, visit Update Central.

My Prediction For Mobile Market Share In 2011

Amit Chowdhry — Sun, 26 Dec 2010 23:18:02 +0000

Fortune’s Seth Weintraub has written a lengthy article about how 2011 will be an explosive year for the Android operating system. He also pointed out that about 269.9 million smartphones were sold this year compared to the 173.5 million shipped in 2009. In 2011 we could see a shipment of about 500 million smartphones across the world. I’ve pulled up a couple of charts from previous reports I have written about in regards to smartphone market share to make a prediction myself. The chart in the top left is Smartphone Market Share from Q1 2010 by Nielsen (Exhibit A). The second chart is smartphone OS mix Q3 2010 put together by Millenial Media, a mobile advertising analytics company (Exhibit B).

Android vs. iPhone
I believe that between these two charts, you can fairly assess what is going to happen in 2011. In Exhibit A, you will notice that Android only had a 9% market share. Fast forward two quarters later and you will notice that Android now has a 38% market share. The iPhone operating system market share jumped from 28% to 38% between Exhibit A and Exhibit B. Android has been able to spread at a rapid pace due to the open source nature of the mobile operating system. Since OEMs have to pay very little to get Android running on their phones, why not make them the default OS? HTC, Motorola, LG and Samsung are seeing the benefits of doing so. These lower costs get passed on to the consumer and will the very same reason why I am predicting that Android will surpass the Apple iPhone in market share in 2011.

Despite a higher Android market share, it is unlikely that Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) will be making more money than Apple from their mobile operating system. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) still has a stronger consumer application ecosystem. In other words, people are more willing to spend money on Apple applications than Google applications. Angry Birds is a huge example as the full version is free on Android and paid on iOS.

The Future of RIM
RIM is the perfect example of what happens if you don’t keep your eye on the ball. In Exhibit A, RIM had a 35% market share and suffered a huge blow over the last two quarters as they now have a 19% market share. If RIM does not clean up their act quickly, then they will likely see their market share drop to 10% in 2011. RIM has been attempting to address the issue of a weak application ecosystem on their operating system by decreasing the minimum app price and increasing the revenue split in favor of developers. But this still doesn’t change the fact that every BlackBerry owner I have talked to is not that happy with the web browsing experiences on their devices.

The New Guy In Class: Windows Phone 7 OS
I believe that 2011 will be a break-out year for Microsoft. Microsoft’s application ecosystem is starting to come together. There are some great applications on the Windows Marketplace. And Microsoft’s OEM partners are developing phones that have specifications comparable to Android devices and the iPhone. Microsoft is rumored to be in talks with Nokia. We may see Symbian’s smartphone market share get replaced by Windows Phone 7 in 2011 if a deal comes through. Microsoft has a bit of money to back them up for smartphone marketing too.

The year 2011 will be an interesting year in the smartphone market. What are your predictions? Let us know in the comments.

Microsoft Rejected Windows Marketplace Applications Lab [Video]

Amit Chowdhry — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 03:47:34 +0000

Every once in a while, Microsoft attempts to make viral videos in order to gain the attention of an existing product or service. In this case they decided to make a humorous video honoring rejected mobile applications for the Windows Marketplace. By putting this video together, Microsoft indirectly knocks on the Apple App Store application approval process. Take a look and let us know what you think about the video in the comments.

Marketplace Is Now Live On Windows Mobile 6.5 Mobile Phones

Amit Chowdhry — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 18:02:55 +0000

Windows Mobile Marketplace opened for developers back in July and now the mobile store is officially open for business. Currently the only way to access the store is through the Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system. The Windows Mobile Marketplace opened one day ahead of schedule and there are about 20,000 Windows Mobile applications on the store as of right now.

Windows Marketplace Scheduled To Launch On July 27

Amit Chowdhry — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 19:41:23 +0000

Microsoft Mobile Platform Services Product Management Senior Director Todd Brix announced at the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference in New Orleans that the Windows Marketplace is on schedule for launching in 29 countries on July 27th. As part of the launch Microsoft will be announcing some sort of contest around the time of launch.

The applications that will be available on the Windows Marketplace will be compatible on Windows Mobile 6.0 and Windows Mobile 6.1 devices. There are about 30 million devices running those operating systems in the market today.

Some of the categories in the Windows Marketplace platform includes Books, Business Center, Communication, Reference, Entertainment, Games, and Lifestyle.

More details to follow on launch day on Pulse 2.

[via Windows Team Blog]