Microsoft this week provided an interesting update on its efforts to promote Windows Phone apps, noting that there are now over 3,000 apps on the Windows Phone Marketplace with over 15,000 developers signed up to deliver Windows Phone apps via that online service.
Here are the ways in which Microsoft says it is promoting Windows Phone apps and games.
1. Find Windows Phone 7 Apps & Games on Bing Visual Search: We’re using our own popular Bing decision engine to further showcase developers’ Windows Phone 7 apps through Bing’s Visual Search capabilities in the US and UK.
2. Promoting Windows Phone 7 Apps & Games on Xbox 360: Last week Microsoft announced that it had sold more than 1 million Kinect devices for Xbox 360 in the first 10 days of availability, adding to the 45 million Xbox 360 consoles already sold. Windows Phone devices, apps and games are now prominent features of the Xbox dashboard that people see on their televisions when they start Xbox and view tabs such as the Spotlight category.
3. Windows Phone 7 Apps & Games on Windowsphone.com (pictured). Microsoft.com is one of the most frequented portals on the Web and Windowsphone.com is the starting point for all things Windows Phone. This site now features an “apps” tab that takes viewers to a Marketplace page that delivers a dynamic list of “featured” and “top free” apps and games.
4. Campaigns featuring Windows Phone 7 Apps & Games. The introduction of Windows Phone 7 is being supported by an extensive marketing and advertising campaign in several major markets around the world. Apps, games and Marketplace are prominent features of our integrated communication activity.
5. Windows Phone Marketplace on Zune PC software. With the international expansion of the Zune music and video service on Xbox LIVE, Windows PC and of course Windows Phone, the Zune PC software is now on more screens and in more markets than ever. With every update and download of the Zune PC software, customers are seeing the latest music, videos and apps for Windows Phone in a single well organized desktop experience.
Question:
Back in August Microsoft announced 50 XBOX Live games: http://windowsphonesecrets.com/2010/08/17/microsoft-announces-the-first-50-xbox-live-games-for-windows-phone-7/
But if you do a search of the Marketplace, there aren’t 50 XBOX live games, do you know what is up with that?
They said that these games would ship “this holiday” season, not be November 26. New games are being added all the time.
http://www.microsoft.com/Presspass/press/2010/aug10/08-16MSGamescomMobilePR.mspx
Thanks for posting the US link to “Find Windows Phone 7 Apps & Games on Bing Visual Search”. This direct link works from here in Australia where it isn’t officially released yet.
Scott
I’ve been impressed with the marketing push on WP7. Even my Dad, who is 70+ and not tech savvy, mentioned the “Really?” WP7 ads when I saw him last weekend.
OTOH, the Bing visual search is kind of cool, but is it me, or has it not been updated in more than a week? I’m still seeing it reporting only 2479 apps, with the latest ones shown as added 11/17… :-/