BELLEVUE, WA — (Marketwire) — 10/30/12 — (NASDAQ: BSQR), a leading enabler of smart, connected devices, today announced a for Android, iOS and legacy Windows applications. The service ports existing apps from various platforms to Windows 8 or Windows Phone 8 quickly and affordably. It delivers completed apps ready to submit for Windows Store and Windows Phone Store certification.
“Windows 8 is probably the biggest porting opportunity in the history of the industry, but Android or iOS applications have to take advantage of Live Tiles and other unique features to be successful,” said Mark Whiteside, Bsquare vice president of professional services. “We port apps to Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 faster and with less risk than developers who need to learn the new OS and certification requirements. We completed an initial wave of ports for global technology brands and worked with Microsoft to fully understand the certification process and how to take advantage of unique Windows 8 features.”
The Bsquare service provides quick, clear estimates on the cost and time required to port an application. Customers visit to upload their code and application details. Qualified applications include desktop programs written for Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7; or mobile applications written for Android, iOS, Windows Phone 7 and earlier versions of Windows Mobile. The estimating process is online and automated to speed delivery and reduce costs. If the developer approves the estimate, Bsquare delivers the finished code to the ISV via download from the secure server in exchange for pre-payment. The process expedites the porting process, especially for organizations with limited Windows development experience.
“For companies without experience in Windows 8 or Windows Phone 8 development, the service from Bsquare is a fast and affordable approach to meet the quality requirements of successful ports,” said Todd Brix, Senior Director, Windows Phone Apps and Store, Microsoft. “We worked with and trained Bsquare to develop their Windows app building expertise to help them speed up app delivery and reduce risk for customers.”
Microsoft opened the Windows Store for developers in September and Windows Phone developers in September 2010 and both require that developers meet certification requirements prior to application acceptance. Bsquare worked with Microsoft to port a first wave of desktop and mobile applications to Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 and applies best practices to ports through the service.
“It-s harder to write a good Windows 8 application than most people recognize,” said Michael Cherry, Research Vice President, Operating Systems for the independent analysis firm Directions on Microsoft. “Most applications in the Windows Store prior to the release of Windows 8 don-t appear to be making full use of Live Tiles, or the Charm and Apps bars. To be successful it-s not sufficient to merely be first in the Windows Store; applications must exploit the unique features of the Windows 8 and Windows RT operating systems, and not merely move an application-s basic feature set from Android or iOS. This is where expertise from Bsquare is going to be invaluable and potentially save considerable time.”
“We do the heavy lifting for you,” explained Whiteside from Bsquare. “Our engineers have more Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 porting experience than nearly anyone. We set up our customers for certification success with fast, high quality ports.”
Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 represent large revenue opportunities for organizations with mobile or desktop applications. Microsoft forecasts more than 400 million Windows 8 users in 2013. Windows Phone 8 is the fastest growing mobile platform, according to IDC. Windows, Android and iOS developers can leverage their existing code and, by meeting quality requirements and porting quickly, can get higher visibility in the Windows Store and Windows Phone Store. Additionally, the Windows desktop and tablet user interfaces overlap, giving tablet developers access to the new tablet market, including Surface, but also hundreds of millions of existing Windows users.
The Bsquare Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 porting services are available now. Pricing starts at $10,000 (USD) and is dependent upon application complexity, the platform for which the application was initially developed, the platform to which Bsquare will port the app and other variables. For more information on pricing and application delivery, see the Bsquare porting site ().
Bsquare, a global leader in embedded solutions, applies experience and expertise on leading platforms to create new connections with customers, new business models and to enable new ways of working and communicating. Bsquare serves customers by forging connections among the partners, people, tools, and technology needed to create smart connected devices. For more information, visit: .
BSQUARE is a registered trademark of BSQUARE Corporation. All other product and company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.
Diana Hoffman
BSQUARE Corporation
+1 425.519.5273
Brett Maas
Hayden IR
+1 646.536.7331
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