Interview: Marco Argenti, Nokia SVP of Developer and Marketplace division

Whilst at MWC, Windows Phone Central had the chance to sit with Marco Argenti, Senior Vice President of the Developer and Marketplace sectionalisation at Nokia. We had just been checking out the new partner apps beingness shown off in Nokia's sizeable booth and were corking to hear more about the relationships Nokia are continuing to build with developers both commercial and indie, particularly following the news of Nokia's new imaging and Here API features.

You can find the full write upwardly of that give-and-take after the break.

On Nokia's new services and APIs

Our interview kicked off with a conversation about the new API'southward Nokia are making available to developers, both how they are being used and why Nokia is offering the new services out to developers.

Marco, conspicuously prepared for our opener, tells us that Nokia are bringing the strategy of differentiating from other Manufacturers frontward into the app realm. The new APIs tin be separated in to three categories, each corresponding to Nokia'southward differentiators.

They are Imaging, Music and Location.

For Imaging, Marco talks nearly the new sequencer capability, part of the framework which makes up Cinemagraph, you can run into a very inventive utilise of the organization in Burton's app, assuasive fourth dimension lapsed images as an object moves across a static background (for instance a Snowboarder making a bound). Nokia are likewise cracking to talk about image processing and filtering into the Windows Phone API, likewise as allowing developers to tweak various settings (such as ISO) afterward a moment has been captured.

Music revolves around integration with Nokia music, in that 3rd party developers are able to provide access to your playlists, both online or offline. 3rd party apps such equally Burton are already demonstrating this by showing you relevant playlists and so jumping out into the Nokia music app when you lot tap.

Location for Nokia is now all encompassed nether the Hither brand. Marco defines 2 layers for developers to leverage. First is the core information layer, what Marco calls the "index of the world". This is the mapping information, vector based rendering for normal maps and tiles for more complex information such as aerial photos. The second layer is the utilizing of extended APIs, these are available to Nokia's partners and designed to be more securely integrated into an app. All these APIs allow for apply of the engineering science in Hither transport, drive (including traffic info) and CityView. These partner apps tin can even so function without extended capabilities on non-Lumia devices, the capabilities of each device are identifies through a combination of the Device Information APIs in Windows Phone, and specifics in the app's manifest.

Nosotros asked Marco to tell us a trivial more about what the Nokia HERE platform offered to developers, including how it was an improvement over Bing maps. To this question he answers by highlighting the low bandwidth style and offline capabilities offered by the HERE platform. With low bandwidth he is referring to the vector based rendering, which of course requires far less data to be transferred than tile based systems. It is likewise true that with offline maps delivered in Windows Phone 8, all calls to the SDK for mapping use whatever data has been already downloaded rather than having to call their own mapping information.

On working with partners and exclusives

A topic of detail involvement to many hither at Windows Telephone Fundamental is Nokia's exclusive app ecosystem, something we introduced as a topic by asking near how the new apps we had been exploring earlier had been conceived, how is it that companies come to working with Nokia directly rather than employing other developers? Do Nokia approach the relevant companies? Or is it the other way around?

Marco showed some hesitance around the specifics of this process. He explained that who approaches who was not of particular importance, carefully fugitive the question. Instead he says that the procedure involves engaging very deeply with the relevant parties. He told us that most of the initial conversations happen effectually the design table with these companies, identifying how the partnership will progress and what Nokia can bring, such was the case with GoPro.

In the case of Foursquare though, we did manage to establish some groundwork. Marco informs us that the inflection indicate for Square was with the release (and subsequent success) of Windows Phone 8. At that point Foursquare and Nokia shared some similar goals regarding location based services and discovery, and it became clear that working together was mutually beneficial. Of course Nokia are looking to unify their experience, and desired a single conversation about their unabridged range, both Asha and Lumia.

Nosotros asked Marco about the Nokia exclusives model too, if in that location was one model which was followed when approaching these apps. Marco explained that in that location is no particular fixed timeframe or any set of business organisation models. Instead, when Nokia have worked to assist in the evolution or marketing of an app, a fixed deal is agreed based entirely on that app. In some cases this volition be having unique features but on Lumia, in others it will be nearly an exclusivity menses. Marco made information technology articulate that Nokia'southward intention here is to work on quality of the apps available for the Lumia range, rather than blocking whatever kind of experience on the wider Windows Phone ecosystem.

On supporting developers

The final topic of conversation between Windows Phone Cardinal and Mr. Argenti was the piece of work which Nokia are doing to aid Windows Phone developers. We discussed how Nokia'southward distribution channels, Ad Exchange program, and developer champions are reaching out to help developers evangelize quality content, and subsequently consumers relish a higher standard of software on their Windows Phone.

We began by request how developers can get involved with Nokia if they are looking for help or to broaden their app'due south distribution. Marco says that Nokia are looking to reward quality, either with advert on their behalf or through device pre-loads. While some developers volition have success with a 'common cold telephone call' to a Nokia staff member, the all-time solution is to either get in touch with a Nokia developer champion, or to use the Dvlup website, recently launched in the U.k. and already available in the Us and Canada.

Dvlup can be compared to square in that information technology rewards engagement with badges and points, which in turn will help them grow their app. When using Dvlup, by following challenges involving updates to their apps and a level of quality co-ordinate to ratings in the market place, developers earn points. These points (or XP on the site) can be exchanged for advertising space, or for prizes such every bit Nokia devices. Dvlup also agree live real time competitions to build app ideas which likewise reward members with XP.

Nokia's champion developers are elite developers who are selected by Nokia to work part time aiding the community around them. We've seen like ideas from Microsoft directly where champions are responsible for organising networking events, providing aid to developers when they get stuck or demand advice.

With Nokia Advert Exchange, nosotros were curious to detect out how Nokia'southward offering is dissimilar to the competition, what does their network offer that the likes of Microsoft or the popular AdDuplex do not? Marco is keen to emphasise that with Ad Substitution, Nokia is guaranteeing high yield on advertising campaigns, focusing on specifically relevant geographies rather than attempting to entreatment to the whole globe. Nokia have aggregated 120 different networks, with advert selection performed whilst being aware of what is on that user'south device and what may appeal to that user through intelligent data processing. The Ad Exchange arrangement is integrated with your Microsoft developer business relationship and includes a Concern Developer Kit (BDK) designed to assist each developer with billing, how to distribute and monetize their apps, and the trial before ownership model.

In Summary

Nokia take made no hush-hush of their desire to focus on quality apps rather than flooding the market with meaningless numbers, and in our time with Marco Argenti this message was clearer than ever. He is clearly a human being passionate nigh engagement with all types of developers, whether indie or enterprise. By offering assistance non simply at a technical level with extended APIs, merely also at a business level with advertising and distribution, hither at Windows Phone Central we can think of no possible reason why every developer out in that location shouldn't wait into Nokia's premium programmer package (it includes a Microsoft Windows Phone publisher account) and go involved with the Dvlup program. For consumers, we hope you lot're as excited as we are to encounter what groovy new apps and services Nokia tin bring to the Windows Phone ecosystem in the hereafter.

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Source: https://www.windowscentral.com/interview-marco-argenti-nokia-svp

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