1）据All About Windows Phone报道，微软日前宣布Windows Phone平台应用数量已突破10万，该平台实现这一目标的速度超过Android（历时24个月），但逊于iOS（历时16个月）。

number of content items(from all about windows Phone)

但有观察者认为，Windows Phone智能手机市场份额并不乐观，其应用软件无助于提升硬件设备的销量（游戏邦注：Gartner数据显示，2012年第一季度Windows Phone和Windows Mobile两者的市场份额仅1.9%，低于去年的2.6%）。

license type(from all about windows Phone)

数据指出，美国Windows Phone平台目前可用的应用数量为7万7450款，而中国Windows Phone应用数量则是3万3063款。Windows Phone免费应用所占比例达67%，付费应用占比23%，付费+试用版应用占比10%。

price-distribution(from venturebeat)

在付费应用中，0.99美元的应用占比62%，售价在3美元以下的应用占比81%。Windows Phone Marketplace现在每天增加应用约313款，每月新增1万款。

在Widows Phone的美国市场中，仅有12%的应用获得不少于5次的用户评价（英国市场的这一比例为8%）。

windows-phone-apps(from AllAboutWindowsPhone)

该应用商店中的游戏应用占比12%，社交应用占比3%，工具类应用占比15%；在游戏应用中，动作+冒险题材占比15%，益智+问答题材占比35%，策略+模拟题材占比4%，经典游戏占比14%，纸牌+桌游题材占比9%，射击游戏占比5%。

windows-phone-games(from AllAboutWindowsPhone)

2）据games.com报道，迪士尼最近将旗下动画《飞哥与小佛》（Phineas and Ferb）角色形象植入手机游戏《Where’s My Water》，预计于本月向App Store和Google Play推出该游戏新版本《Where’s My Perry》。

where's my perry(from games)

该游戏版本还引入了一种新道具“Crazy-inators”，以便玩家将水转变为蒸气、冰或者将其还原为液体。

3）据venturebeat报道，RIM股价日前下跌至个位数，这是该公司近十年来首次出现的情况。

在本周一交易期间，RIM股价不足10美元，当天最低交易价格为每股9.57美元；RIM股票在过去12个月中降幅超过30%。

RIM stock(from topipadfinanceapps.com)

4）Take-Two日前宣布其休闲游戏部门2K Play将在未来数月发布包括基于授权和新IP的多款手机/平板电脑游戏，其中包括以美国总统竞选为题材的《Comedy Central’s Indecision Game》、动作街机游戏《Fiasco the Cat Starring in House Pest》、迷宫益智游戏《GridBlock: The Puzzle Game You’ll Flip Over》、《Herd, Herd, Herd》和《Carnival Games MiniGolf》。

5）时尚杂志《Vogue》发行商Conde Nast日前宣布将于6月份向iPhone和iPad推出一款锁定女性用户的游戏《Fashion Hazard》。

fashion hazard(from games)

该游戏采用Unity开发工具，结合了《Temple Run》中的奔跑元素，玩家在游戏中要送出一个模特，通过倾斜控制方式引导她走向纽约、伦敦、巴黎或米兰中的一条跑道，模特会自动走猫步，玩家只需划动触屏以躲避迎面而来的垃圾或其他障碍。

当玩家成功到达跑道终点时就可以赢得6颗星，但该游戏并未植入积分排行榜等功能。

6）爱立信最近报告显示，3G技术历时12年才覆盖全球一半左右的人口，但仅需再过5年就可覆盖全球85%的人口。预计到2017年，全球移动用户将达90亿，LTE在全球人口覆盖率将达50%（首个LTE系统在2010年才正式启用）；届时全球用户所使用的移动数据流量将增加15倍。

subscriptions by region(from Ericsson)

尽管智能手机普及率在北美、欧洲和部分亚洲地区显著提升，但目前全球智能手机用户仅有7亿，预计到2017年将增长至30亿。

2012年第一季度，全球移动用户为62亿，其中北美为3.3亿，西欧为5.4亿，拉美为6.5亿，印度为9亿，中国为10亿，其他亚太地区为11.6亿。

future of mobile graphic(from ericsson)

（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，拒绝任何不保留版权的转载，如需转载请联系：游戏邦）

1）Does it matter that Windows Phone has 100k apps now?

By Kevin C. Tofel

Microsoft unlocked a new achievement this month, surpassing 100,000 apps for its Windows Phone mobile platform. The data comes from All About Windows Phone, which tracks the app data and has a treasure trove of detailed information about the software ranging from price points to countries with the most apps available.

While the app catalog is growing, Windows Phone software doesn’t seem to be boosting sales as much as it did for Android and iOS devices.

What’s happening with Windows Phone sales?

Not much, to be honest, and certainly not as much as I anticipated after using Windows Phone 7.5 in August of last year. I expected that by the end of this year, Windows Phone could eke out 10 percent market share and surpass BlackBerry. It’s still possible, but it’s going to take a massive effort and Microsoft isn’t heading in the right direction: as of last month, its share of smartphone sales declined over the prior 12 months.

Research firm Gartner notes that Windows Phone and Windows Mobile combined only held 1.9 percent of the market in the first quarter of 2012; down from 2.6 percent a year ago. There have been some recent reports that Microsoft is doing well in China — better than iOS, with a 7 percent share is the report — but I’m skeptical: Windows Phone devices just launched in China earlier this year, while the iPhone has been sold on multiple carriers there for some time. And as much as I like the usability of Windows Phone myself, I have yet to see others with a Microsoft device. Some of my colleagues have echoed the same.

Apps are important, but there’s more to a phone than apps

Here’s the funny thing, and part of the reason that the number of apps really means little — or not as much as it used to. Guess where the most apps are available for Windows Phone devices? According to the data, the U.S. leads the way with 77,450 of the 100,000 available. Going back to the China example, where the phone is allegedly doing well: 33,063 apps are available to Windows Phones in China. Something doesn’t add up.

Actually, the app numbers do make sense, but they have less relevance to actual sales than they used to. As long as the top-tier titles are available for a platform, most users ought to be happy. And more of those titles are appearing on Windows Phone. But — and this is key — few, if any, are launching first on Windows Phone, which suggests developers don’t see the platform as the best place to debut their wares.

Microsoft simply hasn’t given developers, or many consumers for that matter, a compelling reason to opt for Windows Phone over Android or iOS. It’s not the apps; it’s a question of what Windows Phone can do for consumer and for developers already invested in Android or iOS? (As an interesting side note, 67 percent of Windows Phone apps are free.) Xbox Live ought to help and so too will Windows 8, which shares the Metro interface, so there’s hope yet.

App growth means less today than it did 4 years ago

A closely watched metric for app stores of late is the growth rate, but I counter that it’s far less relevant now. In 2008 when Apple launched the iTunes App Store, soon to be followed by the Android Market (now Google Play), such growth was important for two reasons. One: Smartphones running platform-specific apps were a new concept for mainstream consumers. And two: The starting point was zero.

That sounds obvious and yet today we keep hearing how a service is growing faster than Facebook or Twitter did. So too with the app store as All About Windows Phone says “Windows Phone reached the 100,000 milestone faster than Android (24 months), but slower than iOS (16 months).”（source:gigaom）

Windows Phone hits 100K apps, but who’s getting the money?

Jolie O’Dell

The Windows Phone Marketplace has finally attained the 100,000-app milestone. To date, the platform has had 100,145 submitted to the Marketplace, of which around 89,788 are still live in the Marketplace.

More importantly, almost exactly two thirds of the apps in the Marketplace are free. A further ten percent offer a free trial period, after which they are paid apps. Of paid apps, around 62 percent cost $0.99, and 81 percent of paid apps sell for less than $3 each.

These stats come from blog AllAboutWindowsPhone; we’re currently in touch with Microsoft for verification and will update this post as soon as we have it.

AllAboutWindowsPhone also noted that each Windows Phone publisher will come out with four apps, on average, and the huge majority of the applications for Windows Phone are in English for use in English-speaking countries.

The Marketplace has been gaining around 313 apps per day or 10,000 apps per month, give or take, since at least last December — around the time we started getting our hands on Lumia models.

Downloads aside, only around 12 percent of the apps currently available in the Marketplace have been rated five or more times by U.S. users (8 percent in the UK). While the Windows Phone app offerings are growing faster than Android’s (but slower than iOS’s), the quality seems to be on par with the quality of apps on competing platforms.

Here’s a breakdown showing the different types of apps and games in the Windows Phone marketplace:（source:venturebeat）

2）E3 2012: Where’s My Water meets Phineas and Ferb on iOS, Android

by Joe Osborne

How do you make Disney’s most popular mobile game even more popular? Disney looks to be on a tear this year in the mobile and social space, now slapping its Phineas and Ferb onto its mobile hit, Where’s My Water. Charmingly titled Where’s My Perry, this essentially sounds like a palette swap, slapping a Phineas and Ferb likeness onto the puzzling play hook of Where’s My Water.

Of course, this release stars Perry the Platypus as he guides flowing pipes of water to help him escape from a predicament of subterranean proportions. To mix things up, this version of Where’s My Water–let’s just call it what it is, people–introduces new power-ups known as “Crazy-inators” that can turn water into steam, ice or back to liquid again.

We look to have more on Where’s My Perry along with all the rest of Disney’s E3 catalog (like these recently-announced games) later this week as we scramble across the show floor. Where’s My Perry is slated to launch on the App Store and Google Play later this month.（source:games）

3）RIM’s share price drops below $10 for first time in nearly a decade

Sean Ludwig

Research in Motion’s stock has fallen and it can’t get up. The BlackBerry maker’s share price on the NASDAQ exchange fell into single digits for the first time in almost a decade today.

Just last week, RIM halted trading of its shares while it released a terrible update on its financial status. The company is in the process of overhauling its products after years of stagnant software and hardware, which led it to install Thorsten Heins as the new CEO. But as the Canadian company tries to shake off dust and build a product people actually want, it is taking a serious hit in the stock market.

In mid-day trading on Monday, the company fell to below $10 a share, a level that has not been seen since December 2003. At its lowest point during the day, RIM was trading at $9.57 a share. RIM shares have fallen more than 30 percent during the past 12 months.（source:venturebeat）

4）E3 2012: Take-Two targets casual mobile gamers with four titles announced by 2K Play

by Jon Jordan

Slowly, oh so slowly, all the big console publishers are kicking off mobile initiatives.

The latest is Take-Two, which has announced its casual 2K Play division will release a slate of mobile and tablets games in the coming months, ranging from existing licenses to new IPs.

“From our blockbuster Carnival Games series to our exciting new original properties like Herd, Herd, Herd and our election year tie-in with Comedy Central, we’re thrilled to introduce a lineup of games that are with you wherever you go,” said Steve Lux, 2K Play’s VP of biz dev.

Announced titles include:

Comedy Central’s Indecision Game: A US election tie-in that will test your knowledge and see whether the Democrats or the Republicans are smarter.

Fiasco the Cat Starring in House Pest: Cat-based action arcade game in which you have to fix the mischievous cat’s messes before your nosey neighbor or manic mother-in-law arrives.

GridBlock: The Puzzle Game You’ll Flip Over: As it sounds, you have to flip, tilt, slide and shake electro-blocks into place on the GridBlock board in this gravity and maze-based puzzler.

Herd, Herd, Herd: Help Farmer Jed herd clucking chickens, panicky pigs, spunky sheep and crazy cows into their pens before time runs out.

Carnival Games MiniGolf: Includes medieval, wild west and pirate-themed mini-golf courses. （source:pocketgamer）

5）E3 2012: Fashion Hazard on iPad: Finally, a girl game with gusto

by Joe Osborne

Who knew that it would take media monument Conde Nast to create a mobile fashion game that isn’t a snore fest? The famed publisher of Vogue has assembled a crack team of mobile game makers to create Fashion Hazard, the company’s first game for iPhone and iPad that’s set to launch this July for a cool $.99. Fashion Hazard sends players across the runway as one of two models, throwing numerous obstacles, bonuses and challenges in their path.

The Unity-developed, (almost) endless runner takes some smart cues from hits like Temple Run and Subway Surfers, but tailors the entire experience toward lady gamers. (You know, the same audience that CrowdStar seems to have struck gold with?) You might be in doubt that a print-turned-hybrid media company can make a decent digital diversion, but here we are, and for one simple reason.

Unlike the lot of games geared toward women on mobile devices, Fashion Hazard actually challenges the player’s skill in more ways than one. For one, players send a model out on one of four runways across New York, London, Paris and Milan, tilting the device to guide her. The model strolls automatically across the catwalk, leaving the player to swipe up or down at the touch screen to either duck to avoid oncoming trash or hurdle over obstacles.

Along the way, it’s the player’s job to collect as much “bling” as possible and to jump to catch stars, which unlock special, brief challenge sequences that further test players’ reflexes. More specifically, sequences that task players with tapping photographers in order to ensure a successful photo op or tracking an inexplicable circle along a track.

If players successfully reach the end of the runway, they’ll earn up to six stars, and this is right where Fashion Hazard falls a bit flat. There’s no way for players to brag about their scores or see how they stack up against the competition, a staple in any addictive casual game for iPhone and iPad. While we’re told by Conde Nast project lead Juliana Stock that the team didn’t want to clutter up Fashion Hazard with social features, that could very well be what it needs to reach Jetpack Joyride-like success.

At any rate, Fashion Hazard succeeds where other fashion games for iPhone and iPad don’t in that it respects the fact that some–if not not quite a bit of–women want to be challenged at least a tiny when they steal away precious minutes for game time. Fashion Hazard is due out this July on the App Store, and interested faux fashionistas can learn more here.（source:games）

6）Ericsson: 85% of the world will see 3G/4G in 2017

By Kevin Fitchard

It took 12 years for 3G technologies to touch half of the world’s population, but getting to 85 percent coverage will only take another five, according to wireless infrastructure vendor Ericsson. New HSPA+ and LTE network deployments will lead to a near blanketing of the world’s populated areas with mobile broadband by 2017.

What’s more LTE networks are being deployed much faster than their 3G predecessors, said Patrik Cerwall, Ericsson director of strategic marketing. By 2017, LTE will cover 50 percent of the world’s population – a remarkable feat considering the first LTE systems went live only in 2010. That’s, in part, on ongoing trend, Cerwall said: every new generation of cellular technology arrives faster than previous generations. But LTE’s remarkable growth owes much to the huge demand for mobile data spurred by the smartphone, he added.

Total global mobile connections reached 6.2 billion in the first quarter, driven by enormous take up in developing markets. While smartphone penetration in North America, Europe and parts of Asia has ramped up, the devices still only account for a fraction – about 700 million — of the world’s total connections. That will change in five years, though. In 2017, there will be close to 9 million total cellular connections, and one third of them will be smartphones, according to the study.

Ericsson’s Traffic and Market Report is chalk full of data, gathered from Ericsson’s customers, its own Consumer Labs analytics and from independent research reports. We’ll be diving into different aspects of the report in the coming days, but Ericsson has prepared an infographic that details the study’s highlights（source:gigaom）