Microsoft fixes Windows Phone download glitch, resumes app publishing

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) has resumed publication of new Windows Phone applications after resolving issues preventing some smartphones from completing the app download process.

Microsoft temporarily halted Windows Phone Marketplace publishing earlier this week, citing issues related to the digital certificates used to sign new and recently updated apps. "We fixed the digital certificate problem and resumed publishing new apps and updates," Microsoft Director of Program Management Mazhar Mohammed said. "It will take a day or two for the repair to fully deploy and newly-published apps to begin appearing in Marketplace again. If you experienced errors, I want to emphasize that you don't need to do anything to start downloading new apps or updates once the repair has finished rolling out."

Windows Phone Division Senior Director Todd Brix reached out to Windows Phone developers in a separate blog entry, writing "If your app was in the process of being published, you don't need to take any action. We have applied the fix and the app will continue through the certification and publishing workflow as normal."

Brix previously blamed the certification snafu on "hiccups" related to the transition from the now-retired App Hub to the new Windows Phone Dev Center online developer resource. In addition to infrastructure upgrades designed to enhance overall site performance and reliability, Windows Phone Dev Center brings support for PayPal, expanded seller tools for international markets, integration with Microsoft Advertising's pubCenter, improved analytics tools and more flexible sign up and submission.

Windows Phone Marketplace went live in late 2010 in tandem with the introduction of Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 and presently offers more than 100,000 apps to consumers in 63 countries. Last week, The Verge reported Microsoft is poised to rebrand Windows Phone Marketplace as Windows Phone Store, citing several references to the new name in documentation related to the Windows Phone Dev Center launch.

For more:
- read this Windows Phone Blog entry
- read this Windows Phone Developer Blog entry

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