During the past couple of weeks, there has been a focus on the fact that Microsoft"s Windows Store was full of apps that were misleading or offered no value; they only existed to scam consumers. Microsoft initially responded that they would take a closer look at the situation and is now finally making good on that promise.
The company posted up on the Building Apps for Windows blog that they are introducing new certification requirements to help thwart these apps from ever making it into the Windows Store. These three new changes are listed below:
- Naming – to clearly and accurately reflect the functionality of the app.
- Categories – to ensure apps are categorized according to the app function and purpose.
- Icons – must be differentiated to avoid being mistaken with others.
This revised policy is being applied to all new app submissions and existing app updates for both Windows and Windows Phone stores. Microsoft says that they have already started the process of looking back at prior approved apps and are targeting ones that are found to be in violation of these new polices too.
While they said that most developers have been receptive to the changes and had good intentions, by agreeing to change their current app, others have not been happy about the change. Because of this, Microsoft has removed over 1500 apps as a part of this review and will refund any money spent by consumers on these apps since they were determined to be misleading.
The store review process is on-going and the company says that they have more work to do. More so, they know that they need to identify problem apps faster to avoid this situation and they will continue to work to find the right balance between approving an app quickly and thoroughly vetting all submissions.
Source: Microsoft