iOS and Android App Developers Still Not Interested in Windows Phone 10
It appears that a good chunk of the developer community that would have to green-light the idea are refusing to budge, having taken less-than kindly to the idea.
The idea of being able to run market leading games and apps on any given Windows Phone device is appealing enough. Despite presenting a fantastic user interface and being supplied with quality hardware, Windows Phone has always taken a backseat to both iOS and Android. In fact, the total global OS market share chalked up by WP last year was a pretty bewildering 3% – a statistic made all the more painful by the fact that Android scooped up 81%. As such, it’s fairly easy to understand why it is that developers would in general dedicate their time, efforts and indeed their money to creating Android and iOS apps, rather than those aimed at a comparatively tiny WP audience.
The idea, which was floated by Microsoft last month, would have seen developers provided with the necessary tools to make it easier and more plausible to bring Android and iOS apps to Windows Phone 10. Unfortunately, polls carried out following the announcement brought back the suggestion that only around one in ten developers actually has any intention of porting their apps and/or games over to WP. Instead, the majority insisted that in order for it to be a venture that’s worth their time, Windows Phone would first need to make huge gains in terms of the global mobile OS market share – something Microsoft has been fighting tooth and nail to make happen for years.
Of course, the flipside argument is that it won’t be until these apps and games hit Windows Phone that more people will take an interest in the OS. So, it’s something of a “catch 22” for Microsoft – developers won’t give WP the software it needs until its market share grows, which won’t happen until the developers throw the OS a bone or two. The cycle continues…