The announcement came during the Build 2025 conference, where the company revealed a comprehensive strategy aimed at strengthening its relationship with app creators and modernising its digital storefront.

Previously, developers had to pay a registration fee, around $19, before they could publish to the Microsoft Store. With this new policy, the cost attached is being removed entirely. 

While seemingly a small figure, this means Microsoft is making it easier for independent developers to access its ecosystem and reach its base of over 250 million monthly active users.

Apple still demands $99 annually for App Store participation, while Google requires a $25 one-time fee for Google Play. In contrast, Microsoft is removing entry fees and also improving the developer experience with a set of practical updates.

First, Microsoft is revamping how Win32 applications, legacy apps that use .EXE or .MSI installers, interact with the store. Developers can now push updates directly through the Microsoft Store infrastructure, ending the need for users to rely on third-party update prompts. 

The Store will also begin showing when apps were last updated and introduce a non-interactive progress bar for installations, two features long requested by developers.

Added to these, Microsoft is introducing tools like App campaigns, which are designed to help developers promote their apps directly within the Store. While some major applications, such as Google Chrome and Google Drive, remain absent, new entries like Fantastical, Perplexity, and ChatGPT have recently been added. Notion is expected to join them soon.

Microsoft clarified that while onboarding is now free, the Store’s commerce fees remain unchanged. Developers using Microsoft’s payment infrastructure will still pay 15% on app sales and 12% for games. Those using external payment systems will continue to retain 100% of their revenue for non-gaming apps.

I see this as a calculated and timely initiative. The legal and public pressure on Apple’s closed system is growing, and Microsoft is seizing the moment to present itself as the more open and developer-friendly alternative.

The company pointed developers to a Build session titled “Boost Your App’s Success with the Latest Microsoft Store Features” for more insights. Microsoft wants developers on its side, and it’s willing to meet them halfway.

The tech company filed its appeal with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, aiming to overturn a decision that could alter how developers operate within its iOS ecosystem.

The appeal comes in response to U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers’ April 30 decision, which held Apple in contempt for defying a 2021 injunction. 

The original order was intended to prevent Apple from obstructing app developers from directing users to alternative, often cheaper, payment options outside the App Store.

Judge Gonzalez Rogers did not mince words in her ruling. “Apple sought to maintain a revenue stream worth billions in direct defiance of this court’s injunction,” she wrote. She refused Apple’s request to pause the enforcement of her decision, accusing the company of deliberate noncompliance and misleading conduct.

The judge referred Apple and one of its senior executives to the U.S. Department of Justice for a possible criminal contempt investigation—an unusual escalation in corporate litigation that signals the severity of the court’s view on Apple’s conduct.

Apple has rejected the court’s claims, asserting that its App Store rules were not in violation of the injunction and are aimed at ensuring safety and maintaining user trust. In its notice of appeal, Apple did not publicly disclose its full legal reasoning but confirmed that it would challenge the contempt finding in detail.

At the core of the case is a 2020 lawsuit filed by Epic Games, creator of Fortnite, which accused Apple of monopolistic behaviour by restricting developers’ access to third-party payment systems and charging what it described as unreasonable fees. 

The company claimed that Apple’s policies gave it unfair control over app distribution and in-app commerce on iPhones and iPads.

Following the contempt ruling, Apple was ordered to eliminate new practices that the judge deemed obstructive. This included a controversial 27% commission imposed on developers when users completed purchases outside the App Store—a tactic the court viewed as undermining the spirit of the original injunction. 

The judge also banned the use of warning prompts, often labelled “scare screens,” which Apple displayed to dissuade users from using alternative payment options.

The ruling has triggered immediate ripple effects across the tech industry. Companies such as Spotify, which had long criticised Apple’s grip on app payments, are reportedly adjusting their in-app user experiences to embrace the new legal framework and allow external payments.

Neither Apple nor Epic Games responded to media inquiries at the time of filing this report.

The outcome of this appeal carries significant implications for the digital economy. Should Apple fail to overturn the ruling, the decision could reshape how major platforms manage their app marketplaces, setting a precedent that other jurisdictions may follow. 

Meanwhile, the prospect of a criminal contempt probe adds further issues to Apple’s legal standing.