Microsoft Windows 8 Appfest - World’s Largest App Marathon [PICS]

Microsoft is busy with an endeavor to make it to the Guinness World Records for the most number of apps programmed for a single platform in 18 hours.

Enthused by the response of over 3,500 developers, including students, who have gathered here with ideas to be translated into code and market-ready apps on the Windows 8 platform, the Redmond-based software major believes that this feat is unparalleled.

Developer at Appfest

While app fests are quite common these days, it is the first time that Microsoft is introducing an app store for its non-mobile ecosystem.

An added advantage for Microsoft is that this also helps generate some hype around its next big release, Windows 8, slated to release on October 26. The 18-hour event is a non-stop marathon commenced at 2 p.m. on Friday and continued till 8 a.m. on Saturday.

For more pictures - http://bit.ly/appfest12

MASSIVE RESOURCES

Bhaskar Pramanik, Chairman, Microsoft India, noted that IT in India was a $ 100-billion industry, contributing to 7.5 per cent of the GDP.

Although growth rates were slowing down, the sector was stable, which was perhaps why India was the only country where Microsoft was doing an event of this scale, he emphasised.

He said 2 Gigabits of bandwidth was coming into the venue, and six power generating stations were deployed to support an event of this scale.

ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY

Introducing the Windows 8 AppFest, Jon DeVaan, Corporate Vice-President, Windows Development, Microsoft, said this event provided an “unparalleled economic opportunity” to Indian developers.

This, he says, owes to the fact that Windows8 is the only platform where developers will be given full control over in-app purchases (not having to share revenue with the company), while the others developers will have to give 30 per cent of the first $ 25,000 the app generates, and 20 per cent thereafter.

In case, the app owner uses Microsoft’s payment gateway, they will have to share profits, Mr. DeVaan explained.

Raising the pitch for the release of Windows 8, Mr. DeVaan compared this to the launch of Windows 95, which represented a “generational shift” by introducing 32-bit computing. “This is going to make a similar impact.”

He added, “Windows offers app developers state-of-the-art design and development tools, the freedom and flexibility to use a choice of programming languages, including HTML/JSS, global reach to 1.3 billion users, and industry-leading revenue sharing. Simply put, Windows 8 offers the most significant developer opportunity ever.”