Next Monday, the 11th, Microsoft is hosting a bunch of launch events for Windows Phone 7, in London and New York. Ars will be reporting live from both.
The New York event kicks off at 9:30ET with a press conference with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, and AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega, followed by a device showcase of all the AT&T Windows Phone 7 handsets—prominent positioning that cements AT&T's position as the "premier" carrier in the US.
Later in the day, Microsoft is holding another launch event for its customers, also in New York. Surprisingly, given the recent claim in the Wall Street Journal that Windows Phone 7 would initially be exclusive to AT&T, this event will be attended not by AT&T but instead by the US's other major GSM network, T-Mobile.
The London event will be concurrent with the press conference in New York, though which companies and people will be there is as-yet unconfirmed. While carrier options in the US are limited, the same won't be true in the UK. Way back in February, when Windows Phone 7 was first announced at Mobile World Congress, Orange was described as the "lead partner"; it has since been confirmed that all the major UK carriers will have handsets available at launch.
October 11 will also be the first day that developers can submit applications to the Windows Phone Marketplace. Initially, only a couple of thousand developers will be able to submit their applications, and to be part of this initial group, developers must e-mail Microsoft within the next two days. Access to the submission process will then be expanded week by week, before the self-service submission process is made available to all. By the time Windows Phone hardware actually reaches retail availability, there should be a wide range of applications available through Marketplace.
Source: ars technica
