At the annual Build 2025 developer conference, Microsoft announced significant changes to the Microsoft Store aimed at expanding opportunities for app developers. Notably, the company eliminated registration fees for individual developers.

↑ Publishing

• Starting next month, individual developers can publish apps in the Microsoft Store without paying any registration fee - making it the first global digital store to remove such fees. No credit card will be required to get started, removing barriers for developers worldwide.
  Register as a Microsoft Store developer here: https://aka.ms/microsoftstoredeveloper.
  
• For companies new to the Microsoft Store, the Microsoft Store FastTrack program offers free application assistance, waived registration fees, simplified certification, and advisory support. Register at: https://aka.ms/msstorefast.
• Certification process significantly improved with faster processing, clearer guidelines, and fewer resubmissions. Detailed reports with failure logs, policy recommendations, and screenshots help address issues quickly. Privacy policy requirements simplified - can now be hosted on Microsoft servers for free.

↑ User Acquisition

• The new Microsoft Store Web Installer lets Win32/MSIX app developers simplify downloads from any browser. Installers can be embedded on websites and work even on enterprise devices where the Store app might be disabled. Create your app link with "mode=Direct" parameter at https://apps.microsoft.com/badge.
• Users can now more easily find, install, and launch Store apps via Windows taskbar search. Store search improved with vector embeddings and semantic ranking.
  
• Expanded Intune integration now supports Win32 app distribution (beta), AI apps, and age-restricted apps.
• Coming soon: App Campaigns program for promoting apps/games across Microsoft platforms with built-in analytics to track post-install actions and optimize growth.
  Apply for open beta: https://aka.ms/appcampaigns.
  

↑ Analytics

• Partner Center reports enhanced with new "Install Success Rate" metric and "User-Initiated Aborts" trend visualization.
• Coming in two months: Expanded health reports with crash/hang rates and affected device counts to help prioritize bug fixes and compare app versions/architectures/devices.

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