windows-store-logoMicrosoft says it’s streamlining the approval process for Windows Phone apps, in an attempt to make it quicker and easier for developers to get their applications certified for use on Windows Phone. Now, developers can get feedback about their apps more quickly and know whether or not they’ve been certified –sometimes even within an hour of submission.

“We receive a good deal of feedback from the Windows Phone community and one request remains consistent – reduce the time required to certify my app,” Bernardo Zamora, a member of the Windows Phone Store team, said in a blog post. “Over the last several months we have been redesigning our certification workflow to substantially reduce turn-around time while maintaining app quality.”

The company is in the process of moving all Windows Phone developers over to the new certification workflow, which Zamora said will take “several more weeks.” In addition, he said that Windows Developers should see similar improvements to certification speed in the future.

Microsoft has been working hard to improve the tools and resources available for developers on both its mobile and desktop platforms, in part because one of the major weaknesses of its mobile and tablet ecosystem is a lack of apps compared to other, larger players like Android and IOS. Last month, the company began offering Windows developers the opportunity to more precisely time when their app would launch in the Windows Store.

There could be more big news coming for Windows phone developers soon. Last week, rumors surfaced that Microsoft is investigating the possibility of allowing Android apps to run on Windows Phone. In addition, Nokia is rumored to be launching a low-cost Android phone at Mobile World Congress next week.

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