Apps and the technology that brings them to us are constantly changing. For most, this isn't too big of a deal, and high demand keeps our favorite offerings up-to-date and widely available. Unfortunately, this isn't always the case within the Windows ecosystem. We've seen countless Windows 10 Mobile apps drop support and close up shop, and there are quite a few Windows 10 apps that likewise seem to suffer the same fate.
Universal Windows Platform (UWP) apps, those that work across devices in the Windows ecosystem, still seem like part of an answer to the app gap ― developers can reach a much wider audience without having to build five or six different apps ― but even they've taken a bit of a back seat to the emerging Progressive Web Apps (PWA) that operate through a browser like Microsoft Edge.
Windows Central forum member Ed the new guy recently created a thread in our Windows 10 hub asking what the future holds for the Microsoft Store after seeing a favorite app end support in a country where Windows is the dominant OS.
Windows Central has spilled a lot of digital ink on the subject of Windows Store (does anyone call it Microsoft Store?). Some of the stories are realistic but many look to a bright future. The one Windows Store app that I _actually_ use recently announced that it soon will be pulled from Windows store. It's called "Uitzending Gemist" (only available in the Dutch store) and is an app that...
ED the new guy
Ed the new guy surmises that the app developers took a good long look at statistics and saw that usage doesn't match up with Android and iOS, not making it worth the continued Windows support. This led to the line of thought that the Microsoft Store, as it exists now, might not have much of a future if things continue this way. In a reply to the original post PWAs are mentioned, and indeed their success will help the Microsoft Store as long as it stays on top of indexing the latest and greatest.
What do you think about the future of the Microsoft Store? Is the proper indexing of PWAs a key to future success? Will UWP apps remain in the mix? Does the store even need to offer apps to remain relevant? Drop by the thread and share your opinion!
