The latest numbers from the analytics firm claim there's been a 66 percent increase in project starts by developers on Windows Phone 7 of late.
History repeating
While that increase is relative to the somewhat smaller base Windows Phone 7 had amassed in the first place, in a blog post Flurry's Peter Farago notes that the boost Nokia has given WP7 means it's now following a path laid down by the likes of Android before it.
"When Flurry launched its support for Android in October 2008, there was doubt in the industry around the viability of Android as a development platform," he notes.
"Back then, the sentiment was that Android would capture market share as a mobile operating system, but not necessarily as an application development platform or an ecosystem where developers could thrive. 180,000 apps later, Android answered its critics."
Three horse race
Indeed, it's the very similarities between support for Android during its early days and the kind Microsoft is currently fostering for Windows Phone 7 that should have Google worried.
Farago adds that, prior to the Nokia deal, "many questioned the viability of Windows Phone 7 as an operating system that developers would support" in the same way they previously had Android.
"From Flurry's point of view, this weeks spike in Windows Phone 7 developer activity shows that developers not only believe Nokia has given Microsoft Windows Phone7 a shot in the arm, but also that Nokia and Microsoft together can build a viable ecosystem," he concludes.
As a result of the platform bedding down and, no doubt, thanks in no small part to its focus on games Flurry reports Windows Phone 7 is now generating more interest from developers than BlackBerry.
There's certainly a long way to go before this renewed interest transforms Windows Phone Marketplace into as vibrant an outlet as the App Store, but if Flurry's figures are anything to go by, the Nokia deal has given Windows Phone 7 the kick-start it was looking for.
[source: Flurry]
