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Topic: Operating Systems

Angry Birds Space skipping Windows Phone: Maybe Windows 8 instead?

Summary: Angry Birds Space will not be coming to Windows Phone, but perhaps Windows 8 down the line.

James Kendrick

By for Mobile News |

Update: Microsoft and Nokia got a big blow from Rovio, maker of the wildly popular Angry Birds series. The latest installment in the Angry Birds franchise, Angry Birds Space, just launched on most mobile platforms. Conspicuously missing from the list of platforms was Windows Phone, and Rovio said it has no intention to do so.

This move by Rovio is surprising, as the original Angry Birds game is the number one app on Windows Phone. That's not good enough from a business standpoint according to Rovio.

If you look at activations, Apple's iOS and Android are clearly bigger than any other platform," Peter Vesterbacka, chief marketing officer of the game's maker, Rovio Entertainment Oy said. "We want to be on all screens, but we have to consider the cost of supplying the smaller platforms. With Windows Phone it's a lot of work to technically support it.

The decision to skip Windows Phone may have another strategy behind it that we start seeing from other app developers. Rather than building apps for Windows Phone with its tiny installed user base, developers may be concentrating on Windows 8 Metro apps instead.

Metro apps for Windows 8 have more in common with mobile platforms than previous versions of Windows. It will power everything from desktops to tablets, and Metro apps have a lot in common with mobile apps on Windows Phone. While some Metro app code can also be used on Windows Phone apps, developers may be choosing to go for the full Windows platform first, with possible phone versions later.

Windows 8 is a radical departure for Microsoft, but there is little doubt it will have a big installed base beginning at launch expected in October of this year. This makes it a better alternative for app developers, even those concentrating on mobile apps. Going after a piece of a big user base is better than an iffy proposition with a Windows Phone app.

Microsoft may have inadvertently created an environment with Windows 8 Metro that competes directly with Windows Phone in the app development space.

Update: In a surprising move the CEO of Rovio today told Reuters that it will indeed bring Angry Birds Space to the Windows Phone platform. No date was given. Sounds like Rovio needs to get its story straight.

"We are working towards getting Angry Birds Space to WP7," Rovio Chief Executive Mikael Hed.

Related:

Topics: Operating Systems, Microsoft, Mobility, Nokia, Software, Windows

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49 comments
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  • It's nothing personal

    WP 7 just doesn't have the numbers that make porting it, from one of the popular platforms, profitable. The same logic was true for many years, with Mac OS. The market numbers favored Windows, so that's where the developers went. In mobile the market numbers favor Android, and iOS.
    Jumpin Jack Flash
    Reply Vote

    • I agree. iOS has a better ROI

      look at some of the companies that have stopped building for Android - if the ROI isn't there, then from a business standpoint it doesn't make sense.

      And Rovio hasn't made Angry Bird fo0r WP7 since the initial release, where as there are a few versions availabe for iOS (Angry Birds Rio, ect)
      William Farrel
      Reply 1 Vote

      • Like I said

        The same goes for games on Windows vs Mac OS. The developers will go where the money is. Consequently I hope the continue to develop for as many platforms as possible, as it pushes all of them to improve. Microsoft's worst enemy was their own management in the last two decades. They let development lag behind, and pushed the "We're the only game in town mentality"
        Jumpin Jack Flash
        Reply Vote

      • Which, sadly, isn't saying much:

        http://articles.cnn.com/2011-03-04/tech/nintendo.apple.games_1_app-developers-nintendo-executives-game-developers-conference?_s=PM:TECH

        http://wmpoweruser.com/?p=17365

        granted, the latter article might have some bias, but the first article I put in to ensure a common theme between unbiased sources and those that might have an ulterior motive... despite said article from said possibly-biased source being written some time ago...
        HypnoToad72
        Reply Vote

      • @Jumpin Jack Flash-

        Agreed.

        Granted, "research for its own sake" has been frowned upon for some time... it is costly to do. And it can be cheaper to let others do research and then find every conceivable way to "legally" copy the features, which Microsoft isn't the only company guilty of doing...
        HypnoToad72
        Reply Vote

    • Except it's not true according to Rovios CEO

      http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/23/rovio-windows-idUSL6E8EN7NH20120323?feedType=RSS
      Johnny Vegas
      Reply Vote

      • Now I feel bad by sending them an email

        Because I got a similar response from their development team.

        [quote]Bob,

        There has been information circulating that we are dropping support for the WindowsPhone platform that are not accurate. Rovio has a commitment to develop its offerings for a variety of platforms including WindowsPhone and the upcoming Windows 8 and WindowsPhone 8 along with continued support for iOS and Android. At this time we cannot say if Angry Birds Space will be available for WindowsPhone at the same time as iOS or even Android but it is being developed for all 3 of the platforms.

        Thank You for your support,

        The Rovio Team[/quote]
        bobiroc
        Reply Vote

      • Oooops....Another reporting mistake from ZDNET.

        Funny how the tiny update at the bottom of the article really means, all that crap that was just spewed is totally wrong...Maybe someone should have checked their facts before rushing to push out another faulty article. Credibility FacePalm.
        gomigomijunk
        Reply Vote

  • money is the root of all evil

    Rovio has the recources to make a game for wp7 and they dont becuase thier margins wont be as significant as that of Apple or Android. To me, it sounds like Rovio isnt in the business of entertaining and gaming but instead making money.

    Hence, "money is the root of all evil".

    For those of you who critize that statement take a minute to realize that even if they ported the game to WP7 thier cost of developement is easy covered. It comes down to the extra stuff. They want more "extra" stuff.

    So be it, it's how the world turns...
    zettersten
    Reply 1 Vote

    • My money my will

      I used to buy Angrybird gear, but not any more because they are skipping my favorite platform. So my money, my will and probably if other WP7 lovers stop buying Angrybird game, and gear, they would listen. Of course I know that may not hurt them financially, but will at least listen. peace. You are right "Money is the root of all evil". And if consumers also become think with the brains of every CEO, probably businesses will start looking from consumers' glasses.
      Ram U
      Reply Vote

      • I plan to speak up

        I do not use WindowsPhone yet but it is high on my list of considerations next time I upgrade my phone. I love the platform and will let Rovio and other "App" developers know that there are customers that want them to develop for that platform.

        Let your voice be heard. Contact Rovio
        http://www.rovio.com/en/about-us/contact
        bobiroc
        Reply 1 Vote

      • Spoken like a true Linux fan

        Congratulations Sir!
        kirovs@...
        Reply Vote

      • No, the quote is wrong.

        For the sake of accuracy: "Love of money is a root of all kinds of evil."

        If you stop buying and it hurts them enough, or if they think the publicity is bad enough, they'll cave. But if not, well, why not start your own company and develop games for platforms with really low ROI?
        harvey_rabbit
        Reply Vote

      • They might hear a noise, but they won't listen until they are hurt.

        Morals and ethics don't have the clout they used to, probably...

        But money does, and naysayers can only compel enough people to stop paying. But once they get your money, they become Charlie Sheen.

        #Winning

        And, this being more a general comment, the shift of vernacular from "customer" to "consumer" is insulting. One implies we spend hard-earned money and demand something good from it. The other implies we're leeches...
        HypnoToad72
        Reply Vote

    • That's how the market goes

      WindowsPhone is an impressive platform but companies will will offer their products where the market is. For once I will agree with Jumping Jack Flash in that software is produced for the markets it will sell on. In the same light companies are going to offer what customers want which is why most OEMs offer Windows and not some Linux variant on the computers they sell. Linux (in it's many versions) is a fine operating system but it has failed to make an impression on the market. Maybe it is due to the fact that they are non-profit and do not advertise but it is also due to the fact that it does not run the software and work with much of the hardware that most people want and like to use in their daily computing life. The same goes for MacOS which is why some software and solutions are not available on MacOS. Now if enough WP7.x users contact Rovio and request the software then maybe they will change their mind. Maybe it will come up later as it has been seen when an iOS app comes out and Android users contact the developer and the app comes out later for that platform. These companies are in the business to make money and if the costs of developing for a certain platform will not reflect on the ROI then they do not make the product. Supply and Demand - Economics 101.

      All that being said I am a fan of the WindowsPhone platform and so are the many tech reviewers that have used it and recommended it but in the end it is the consumer who decides.
      bobiroc
      Reply Vote

      • Developers will only listen

        If there is overwhelming demand. If 3 million customers represents 10% of one platform, and 99% of another. The developers will focus on the 10% hoping that they can get another 10% trough the halo effect. But if there are 500,00 people calling for it on WP 7 and 6 million calling for it on Android, where do you thing the developer os going to spend their money? BTW do people buy apps for Android?
        Jumpin Jack Flash
        Reply Vote

      • RE: Developers will only listen

        What you say is very true. But if you sit back and do not say anything then they will not even know. I just wish some people that cry about Linux not being offered or certain software not running on Linux would get that instead of blaming the OEMs for not offering it because there is little to no demand for it.

        If a company is doing something that I do not agree with like not offering a product or service to certain people or by charging fees or whatever I am sure to take a couple minutes and let them know in a polite and calm manner. I work in IT and part of my job is to support end users and it drives me nuts when I find out about a problem much later through the grapevine because the person(s) having the problem couldn't take the time to let me or another representative of technology know. Speak up or be forgotten about.
        bobiroc
        Reply Vote

      • The market goes based on what is the best marketed and thus manipulated

        Anyone thinking it's free and unfettered doesn't realize the extent of the larger players trying to shift things for their personal benefit/continuance (since they know that, in a truly free market, they would never survive), and I've yet to mention lobbying for corporate subsidies and other entitlements.

        Windows Phone is the latest iteration of Windows Mobile/Pocket PC/Windows CE/whatever. It still has the ever-delightful registry... the new UI has very bland looking blocks that have a cool twirl effect, but as I am going into .NET development, I seriously am considering it for my next phone.

        But the law of supply and demand is very malleable (the US has been a net exporter of gasoline, tons of it, for a while now yet prices still go up... never mind when companies or politicians claim we need more Americans for x and y positions, yet the pay for those positions hasn't been going up... because the law claims the lack of something means the cost has to go up because it's more valuable... plenty of examples exist, but I don't blindly believe "the law of supply and demand" as such. Especially when some manipulate the markets and try to peg the so-called law on it. But the number of tangents one could use to shatter that law's claim can all be found via a 10 second web search...)
        HypnoToad72
        Reply Vote

    • Not exactly sure of what point you are trying to make

      Rovio should port to wp7 even if they make no money for that effort? They should do this because they DO make money with the same product on other platforms?

      I might suggest that the revenue being generated by the Rovio products on the WP7 do not cover the costs associated with keeping the staff on hand to maintain the WP7 products. What is really remarkable about this is that they are porting to WP7 not developing new products for WP7. The associated costs of releasing their product lines on WP7 should be, but are not necessarily lower.
      YaBaby
      Reply Vote

    • Correction

      For the sake of accuracy: "Love of money is a root of all kinds of evil."

      I know, I had to defend the misquote, "money is the root of all evil" for a debate. Didn't have a prayer.

      Anyway, yes, Rovio is a business whose goal is to make money, not to entertain others at their own expense. I'd say that's a model you'd want to follow, until you make a couple of million.
      harvey_rabbit
      Reply Vote
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