Nokia deal ’causes surge in WP7 game projects’

Microsoft’s landmark partnership with phone giant Nokia has led to heaves of developers starting Windows Phone 7 projects, new data suggests.

Market research firm Flurry Analytics has measured a 66 per cent rise in game and app projects for the Windows Phone 7 operating system. The group said the surge in activity came the same week Nokia announced it would develop smartphones with Microsoft’s mobile software.

A Flurry Analyics spokesperson said that, because it had only been measuring Windows Phone 7 data for a few weeks, the firm double-checked the data to ensure the 66 per cent rise “was not an aberration”.

“With spiking support for Nokia and Microsoft, developers are showing us they believe,” the spokesperson added.

Last week Nokia announced it would form a new partnership with Microsoft, where the Finnish firm’s own mobile operating system will be replaced by the new Windows Phone 7 platform.