Windows Phone Marketplace coming to SA
Microsoft South Africa launched it’s Windows Phone 7 offering in South Africa towards the end of 2010 with devices from HTC becoming available shortly thereafter.
However, just as with Android devices and the iPhone, South African Windows Phone 7 users found their use of the platform’s application marketplace restricted.
Windows Phone 7 users in South Africa are unable to get “paid-for” applications from Windows Phone Marketplace, a restriction similar to that faced by local Android users.
According to Microsoft, South African developers have also not been able to sell and distribute their applications using Windows Phone Marketplace.
This is all set to change in 2011, however.
Speaking at Microsoft’s MIX conference held earlier this month, Microsoft’s corporate vice-president of Windows Phone programme management, Joe Belfiore, highlighted the company’s plans for expanding the Windows Phone Marketplace footprint.
Firstly, Belfiore said that Microsoft plan to expand the number of countries, where apps can be created, from 30 to 36 (though the slide indicated it to be 38 countries).
“So there’ll be a wider range of places around the world where you can submit apps to Marketplace,” Belfiore said.
Secondly, Microsoft plans to increase the number of countries from where you can buy applications on Windows Phone Marketplace from 16 to 35.
In both instances, Belfiore’s slides indicated that South Africa is one of the countries included in Microsoft’s plans.
According to Belfiore these changes are due to coincide with Windows Phone 7’s “Mango” update which is due “this fall” [September – November 2011].
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