Microsoft (MSFT) Still Has Work to Do to Win Back Developers (NOK) (AAPL) (GOOG)
Names like King (Candy Crush) and Smule (mainly music apps) have shunned the Windows Phone 8 (WP8) platform, saying the user base wasn't robust enough to dedicate resources for developing an app. Developers generally want to see WP8 gain material market share before moving further along.
Meanwhile, Microsoft probably won't attract new customers if it doesn't have a robust mobile ecosystem.
It's a real catch 22 problem.
Chaotic Moon, developer of
Dragon Academyand other apps, said it generated more in one hour of sales on Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) devices than it did on all Windows Phone devices in 2012. The company has no current plans to bring
Dragon Academyto WP8.
Not to say WP8 is a barren wasteland for apps; Bloomberg noted that WP8 has about 175,000 apps, while iOS is over 900,000 apps and Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) Android has surpassed the 1 million app milestone.
Microsoft has moved to aid developers, particularly for larger firms right now. The company built and maintains an app for Pandora Radio (NYSE: P) and Facebook (Nasdaq: FB).
Microsoft also believes that having Nokia's assets will speed the creation of handsets and its also more-focused on educating the retail sales person.
One key factor for Microsoft over the next several months is the introduction and traction gained with Windows 8.1. Though Microsoft has made iOS- and Android-compatible apps, users that get more familiar with the new Windows layout might opt for their next device to have a similar structure, which could boost WP8 and Surface tablet sales.
Shares of Microsoft are up in early trading.