| Microsoft Finally Delivers 95% Share To Developers |
| Written by Lucy Black | |||
| Thursday, 07 March 2019 | |||
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After a wait of 10 months Microsoft has finally introduced its promised better terms for apps in the Microsoft Store. But it's not a blanket deal - it excludes games and Xbox purchases. While other app stores hand over 70% of the revenue from apps Microsoft now gives you 95%. This was announced at Build 2018, see Microsoft Offers More Revenue To Developers, supposedly to encourage devs to write apps for Windows 10. So what has taken Microsoft so long to draw up the new developer agreement, which introduces the improved share? You can't help but think that Microsoft is handing over a bigger chunk of something very small. If you have an app that is generating a revenue stream, then you can't complain at the raise you have just received, but I don't think this is going to encourage many people to start on a new app. However, with Microsoft only taking 5% it is making hardly anything on each purchase once payment transaction charges are taken into account. It really does raise a lot of questions - including why has it taken so long between the announcment and rolling out the new terms and conditions?
The wider question on the future of UWP still remains. Microsoft is still pushing ahead with building the API to include more features and yet it announced that the new version of Edge would be a traditional Win32 application and much of the poor performance of Skype is down to it being a UWP. With the Store now accepting Win32 applications and PWA apps based on JavaScript and HTML it is arguable that UWP is unnecessary technology. Whatever happens, Microsoft will no doubt deny that it's dead until long after it is buried. The tension between the old Windows and the wannabe new Windows is still causing a lot of problems.
More InformationUpdated Microsoft Store App Developer Agreement: New Revenue Share Related ArticlesMicrosoft Offers More Revenue To Developers Microsoft Admits 1 Billion Target Out Of Reach To be informed about new articles on I Programmer, sign up for our weekly newsletter, subscribe to the RSS feed and follow us on Twitter, Facebook or Linkedin. 
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| Last Updated ( Thursday, 07 March 2019 ) |
The new deal is much as originally stated. You get 95% if the customer gets to buy your app via an external referrer, but only 85% if they arrive from a Microsoft link such as searching the Store. Even this is good compared to the 30% that Apple and Google take for everything. It applies to all Windows 10 PCs, Windows Mixed Reality, Windows 10 Mobile and Surface Hub devices. So basically that comes down to Windows 10 as the others are niche markets. It also excludes all games and Xbox purchases - a pair of large markets.
