Largest mobile developer study in history shows strong momentum for Windows Phone

Results of the largest mobile developer study, spanning 115 countries and 6,000 participating developers has shown that more developers plan to start developing apps and games for Windows Phone than any competing platform. That may sound like something to celebrate, but we have to remember that 71 percent of developers who took part in the study already have work published for Android and 56 percent on iOS. That said, it's positive they're showing interest in Microsoft's mobile OS.

The study was commissioned by VisionMobile to track mobile ecosystems, developer mindshare and monetisation trends. The results and findings are interesting, yet not surprising. An example would be the average developer builds for 2.9 ecosystems simultaneously (a mash-up of Android, iOS and Windows Phone) with Android, iOS or HTML5 as their primary platform 84 percent of the time. This is down from 2011, showing the steep drop for BlackBerry and difficult battle between the Canadian company and Microsoft.

In the past we've looked at stories showing developers viewing the Windows Phone platform as a worthy investment, as well revenue per consumer reports. It's not all about market share either, the study shows 59 percent of developers who are building for just a single platform choose iOS first, while 49 percent choose Android. Nokia and Microsoft both offer developers the chance to win new hardware, services and hand out tools for free to drive interest and development, offering more affordable options for those looking to publish work.

Now that the platform is further securing the third position in the marathon, Redmond will certainly look to tackle developers to the ground and chain them up with the Xbox One and Windows 8. With the stores increasing in catalogue size, we're certainly witnessing progress, just like market and mind share. Just like Tesco's slogan: Every little helps.

Source: VentureBeat