Microsoft's Windows Phone Market Place is rumored to have 60K apps in the store. The rise in the number of apps has been phenomenal. With all the major apps already available and new developers showing interest in the platform, it is expected to rise exponentially hence forth.
Interesting point is the time that Microsoft has taken to reach this number. Here's a comparison with Android, BB, Symbian and iOS for the time they took to get 50K apps in their marketplace.
Microsoft is behind only to iOS and the reason is well known. Apple got apps ready before it actually launched the iTunes.
Point of note is Windows Phone is ahead of Android by couple of months and much ahead of the others.
Here's another graph that shows number of apps in Windows Phone marketplace
Rise in number of apps has been exponential since last September, thanks to the student developers who enrolled as part of the iUnlockJoy program of Microsoft.
The program which concluded yesterday had an awesome deal for students. They get to register for free on the Marketplace as part of the DreamSpark program of Microsoft. All they needed was to develop 4 certified apps that get published in the marketplace by 26th of Jan and they would be rewarded with a cool Mango device.
This program has surely concluded in the rise of application in the marketplace. I know a lot of my friends who registered for the program and are awaiting result for the same. Just 3 months of the program saw an addition of almost 20K new apps in the marketplace and students surely have played a major role in the same.
To remind all the readers, Microsoft has been closely associated with Academia and has several programs running for the students and faculties of which DreamSpark, MSDN AA, Imagine Cup are of note.
Only Windows Phone has the option of free registration for Students and it seems paying off.