Windows Marketplace to launch with 600 apps
Some of which will be free games
When Microsoft launches its own mobile app store this autumn, it claims that there will be some 600 apps available. Not exactly in the same league as the App Store's 50,000, but it's a start.
Windows Marketplace for Mobile will allow you to buy apps via credit card or through operator billing, and will even permit you to 'return' apps within 24 hours if you're not completely satisfied. Which, we would imagine, opens up a whole heap of worries for mobile games developers.
Audrey Zolghadr, Windows Mobile Product Manager, told MobiFrance (read the full translated interview here) that the company wanted to make the smartphone a little more fun, and so would be offering a selection of free games from the start of the service.
One major developer that's thrown its hat into the Microsoft Marketplace ring is EA Mobile, so it will be interesting to see how it handles this issue.
The Washington Post