Epic Games and Amazon are first to sign up
Microsoft has allowed third-party storefronts into its app store, and its move will make Apple squirm because Epic Games is among the first to use the new facility. A revision to Microsoft Store policies published on September 28th added a Section 10.1.6 that states: Microsoft won’t accept any old storefront: section 10.1.6 also states « Your storefront must offer a comprehensive catalog of content of sufficient size (a minimum of 20 distinct products, excluding downloadable content and in-app products or offers) to provide a unique and valuable user experience. » As explained in a blog post by Microsoft Store general manager Giorgio Sardo, third-party storefronts will get the same treatment the Microsoft store offers to apps, even though Microsoft won’t take a cut of sales it facilitates. « Just like any other app, third-party storefront apps will have a product detail page that can be found via search or by browsing – so that users can easily find and install it with the same confidence as any other app in the Microsoft Store on Windows, » he writes.
