Windows Phone Thoughts: Firefox Mobile For Windows Mobile On Hold

"While we think Windows Phone 7 looks interesting and has the potential to do well in the market, Microsoft has unfortunately decided to close off development to native applications. Because of this, we won't be able to provide Firefox for Windows Phone 7 at this time. Given that Microsoft is staking their future in mobile on Windows Mobile 7 (not 6.5) and because we don't know if or when Microsoft will release a native development kit, we are putting our Windows Mobile development on hold."

No real surprise here, it was just a matter of time. Microsoft's lockdown of development for WP7S was bound to drive a few developers away, at least until the platform had proved itself. In Mozilla's case, with native code off-limits, there wasn't much choice. While the IE browser on WP7S might be all it promises to be, having choices helps drive innovation and improvement. Here's hoping for an eventual return - Firefox Mobile was shaping up to be a contender.