The homebrew team behind ChevronWP7 has pulled the tool after talks with Microsoft.
Recent reports indicate that the Windows Phone 7 unlock tool has been discontinued just five days after its release.
Called ChevronWP7, the software mimicked the $99/year developer account by allowing users to sideload applications outside Microsoft’s official marketplace. The tool was free to download and use, and was never meant to promote piracy, but rather to promote homebrew development. However critics didn't agree, with one even protesting that ChevronWP7 provided "one of the planks for the bridge to piracy."
But now the debate is over. After a meeting with Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 Director of Developer Experience Brandon Watson, the three-man ChevronWP7 team has decided to pull the plug.
"Through this discussion, we established a mutual understanding of our intent to enable homebrew opportunities and to open the Windows Phone 7 platform for broader access to developers and users," the team said. "To pursue these goals with Microsoft’s support, Brandon Watson has agreed to engage in further discussions with us about officially facilitating homebrew development on WP7. To fast-track discussions, we are discontinuing the unlocking tool effective immediately."
Following the announcement, the team revealed a Windows Phone 7 custom ringtone manager, proving that homebrew developers and Microsoft can indeed exist together in harmony. The team has even released the source code to guide hopeful WP7 homebrew developers.
With the ChevronWP7 chapter now closed, it wouldn't be surprising to see the next unlock/jailbreak tool appearing any day now.
Now I need a $99 development license? So long WinMo, Hello Android.
Now I need a $99 development license? So long WinMo, Hello Android.
$99 isn't the point. It could be $20, 10, 5 and I would still be upset that I have been working with a product for years and now all of a sudden they want to charge me for development.
Windows still has the best dev environment for phones, period.
What's the point of creating a phone with an app store when you are going to charge people to develop for that store (whether they charge for their app or not)? If people want to charge, then Microsoft gets their cut. If people want to give it away, Microsoft still gets its cut (30% of nothing is nothing). No, rather than open their platform and increase its popularity by having more apps included, Microsoft wants to make a quick buck off the few developers willing to write apps for their platform. Why do you think Apple touts their 300,000 apps (even if 200,000 of them are fart apps)? Because people know with more apps, its more likely that whatever they want their phone to do "There's an app for that" (TM).
Are you kidding? Microsoft's platform has more developers than ANY OTHER platform around..... ever..... combined. Do you think it's much different for Windows devs to program for Windows mobile?
nope.... They will make millions on on the licensing alone.
personally i think it should work like this, you can put any app on any phone you want, but you pay (or give a portion of your profits) to host your app on the app store.