Windows Phone Thoughts: Microsoft-Nokia Announcement Spurs Windows Phone 7 App Development

According to an article found in Businessweek, Flurry Inc. has indicated that interest in WP7 app development has increased significantly since Microsoft announced their partnership with hardware giant Nokia.

In fact, when it comes to new projects, WP is now ranked as 3rd behind Apple and iOS.

"New projects for Windows Phone passed Research In Motion Ltd.’s BlackBerry and now rank third behind new apps for Apple Inc.’s iOS and Google Inc.’s Android, Flurry said. Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft, which agreed last week to have its Windows Phone software power Nokia handsets, is working to turn around market-share losses to Apple and Google. A wide variety of applications is critical to attracting mobile-phone users"

While the overall percentage of new projects is still only at 4% (up from 1%), this is definitely a move in the right direction. Nokia has a large international appeal. With their commitment to Windows Phone, developers are likely seeing the potential for their applications and games to reach millions, if not billions, of people around the world.

Developing apps for Windows Phone may have suddenly went from a labor of love, to a real practical business strategy for maximizing profits. It's amazing how much could change so quickly isn't it?

How do you feel about the growth? Talk about it in the forums!