Developer tools for the new Windows Phone 8 are coming later this summer and will include a Software Development Kit (SDK) for Windows Phone 8 and new Visual Studio 11-based development tools.

In addition, game developers will profit from supports from popular gaming middleware

New features for the developer tools include:

• Native code support: Windows Phone 8 has full C and C++ support, making it easier to write apps for multiple platforms more quickly. It also means Windows Phone 8 supports popular gaming middleware such as Havok Vision Engine, Autodesk Scaleform, Audiokinetic Wwise, and Firelight FMOD, as well as native DirectX-based game development.
• In-app payments: In Windows Phone 8 we make it possible for app makers to sell virtual and digital goods within their apps.
• Integrated Internet calling: In Windows Phone 8, developers can create VoIP apps that plug into our existing calling feature so Internet calls can be answered like traditional phone calls, using the same calling interface.
• Multitasking enhancements. Windows Phone 8 now allows location-based apps like exercise trackers or navigation aids to run in the background, so they keep working even when you’re doing other things on your phone.

100,000 Apps Now in Marketplace

Windows Phone Marketplace officially hit 100,000 apps and games—a milestone we reached faster than Android, and a testament to the thousands of talented developers around the world who’ve supported us since launch. You are deliver more than 200 new titles, on average, each day.

New Hardware

Hardware partners are supporting Windows Phone 8. The first wave of devices for Windows Phone 8 will come from Nokia, Huawei, Samsung, and HTC, all built on next-generation chips from Qualcomm.

For more information, see Announcing Windows Phone 8.

Bruce D. Kyle
Technical Evangelist | Microsoft Corporation