Windows 8 App Challenge: Microsoft Australia giving away 50 x $1,000 Windows RT tablets

Australian developers, start your Windows 8 app engines.

Attendees of the Microsoft TechEd Australia 2012 conference over the next couple of days will have the opportunity to win one of 50 Windows RT tablets for submitting three Windows 8 apps to the Windows Store by October 1.

The $50,000 AUD contest (50 x Windows RT tablet each worth $1,000) starts today on September 10 and closes three weeks later on October 1. During this time, the developer must create an Australian Windows Store account, submit three Windows 8 applications, complete a virtual lab session and email Microsoft Australia with their apps.

The first 50 developers who successfully publish three or more new apps will win the Windows RT tablet, to be delivered by 30 November 2012. There is a buffer until October 26 for certification and publishing in the Windows Store.

Although Microsoft Australia isn’t saying which particular device it will be, there’s a good chance it will be the Microsoft Surface. Having said that, the $1,000 value is interesting but it could be considered “up to”.

Interested Australian developers can find out more about the challenge and sign up on the TechEd Australia App Fest page.

9 insightful thoughts

  1. Cool, but –

    * submit *three* Windows 8 apps? in three weeks?
    * the implication that $1000 reflects the price of a Surface RT is gonna cause some problems if this gets picked up by the gadget tabloids…

  2. @hornetfig
    >submit *three* Windows 8 apps? in three weeks?
    It’s not that hard, once you have the development environment set up and all that. Some quick ideas (taken from actual apps):
    -Pull my finger
    -Wobble boobs
    -Joke of the day
    -Cat picture of the day
    -Check your match

  3. Nicely done, Microsoft. Show you’re desperate for developer support (if the platform was great, developers would be jumping on it themselves), send out bad vibes about the Windows RT tablet pricing (which is still just rumors and vapourware, so long after the “please don’t touch the” Surface event), and encourage even more shovelware into the Windows 8 app store by requiring people to submit three apps with a three week deadline.

    As someone who wants Microsoft to stop neglecting the parts of Windows that people actually want and use while chasing redundant ideas that other platforms do better already, I fully approve of this marketing! The faster everything Microsoft have done in the last few years fails, the faster they can get back to doing something relevant.

  4. Maybe the Op meant the higher end Surface devices that run normal Windows 8 and not Windows RT because that price would be taking the piss.

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