Windows Phone 7 gets Visual Basic tools

Microsoft said it will double its developer audience for Windows Phone 7 with the launch of tools to allow Visual Basic specialists to create apps for the mobile OS.

The announcement will enable Visual Basic developers to submit Silverlight applications to the Windows Phone Marketplace.

Last week, Microsoft revealed there were nearly 3,000 apps and games in Windows Marketplace and 15,000 developers were creating apps for the platform.

However, last week also saw the release of a jailbreaking app for Windows phones called ChevronWP7, which could allow users to create their own apps.

The ChevronWP7 developers have been quick to state, however, they do not condone piracy.

"Our intention is to enable and create WP7 homebrew applications that cannot be submitted to the Marketplace in the first place," the developers said in a blog.

Meanwhile, e-retailer Mobilesplease.co.uk reported this week Windows Phone 7 phones made up just under two per cent of its overall sales.

Symbian 3 handsets were found to have outsold Windows 7 Phones by three to one from the site.

"The 800,000 people who visit these mobile channels a month are enough to show that the initial public reaction to Windows Phone 7 is luke warm at best," a blog from the company read.

In more positive news, there have been reports Microsoft is to release a massive update for its new mobile OS in January, with some suggesting copy and paste features along with multi-tasking capabilities will be included.

Windows Phone 7 was launched in the UK in October, having initially announced it in February at Mobile World Congress.