Microsoft Store Renaissance: Unified Updates and Open App Models

Microsoft’s app-store experiment started with a clear promise — a single, safe place to find and automatically update Windows software — but for more than a decade the reality was a sequence of missteps, confusing platform shifts, and fragmented developer incentives that left most PC users ignoring the store entirely. Over the last two years Microsoft has made the most aggressive, pragmatic changes yet: opening the store to every app model that matters (Win32, UWP, PWA, Electron), letting developers use their own commerce systems, and building a unified update orchestration that can bring third‑party app updates into the Windows Update lifecycle. Those moves fix the core functional problems that began with Windows 8, but adoption still depends on developer trust, certification quality, and the technical work required to make updates safe and reliable. (theverge.com) (theverge.com)

Background​

What the store should have been — and why it matters​

The ideal Microsoft Store would have combined two proven ideas: Apple’s centrally curated storefront for discoverability and security, and Linux-style package management for predictable, system-wide updates. A single, trusted catalog would remove the need for countless vendor updaters, reduce user exposure to dodgy installers and adware bundles, and make software maintenance less chaotic for both consumers and IT administrators.
That was the promise when Microsoft introduced the Store: a central place for vetted apps with automatic updates and sandboxed execution. Instead, a set of platform-level choices and shifting developer incentives turned that simple promise into years of confusion and missed opportunity. The result: a store that for many Windows users became irrelevant. (theverge.com)

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How the Windows Store unspooled: key failures from Windows 8 through Windows 11​

The Windows 8 launch and the "modern" app mistake​

Windows 8 shipped on October 26, 2012 with a touch-first shell and a new app model (variously called “Metro,” “Modern,” or “Store-style”) that ran full-screen and was optimized for tablets. The Store was positioned as the delivery vehicle for these apps, but Microsoft treated modern apps as a primary platform rather than an option—and that was the first strategic error. Desktop applications — the same Win32 apps people relied on for years — were sidelined. For the majority of PC users, the Store simply didn’t have the software they needed in a form they would use. (theverge.com)
That mismatch created two immediate problems: developers had no compelling reason to rewrite mature desktop apps for a constrained, touch-first environment; and users learned quickly that searching the Store often didn’t produce the real, full-featured versions of the apps they trusted. The early Store became the wrong answer to a valid question: how to make Windows safer and easier to update. (theverge.com)

Scams, low-quality listings, and a trust problem​

In the Store’s early years the platform suffered not only from paucity of real desktop apps, but also from poor curation and copycat listings. Search results frequently turned up clones, “how-to” payware wrappers for free software, or phantom apps that simply pointed users to external downloads — sometimes charging money for the convenience. That damaged user trust and forced Microsoft into periodic cleanup operations, but the brand damage lingered. Microsoft removed thousands of offending apps in 2014 as part of a cleanup, but the reputation problem didn’t go away overnight. (techcrunch.com)

UWP, Project Centennial and the “rewrite or repack” trap​

Microsoft’s next strategic pivot was Universal Windows Platform (UWP), an architecture introduced during the Windows 10 transition that could theoretically run across PCs, consoles, HoloLens, and phones. UWP was useful in specific niches, but it did not replace the vast ecosystem of Win32 desktop apps. To bridge that gap Microsoft introduced Project Centennial (the Desktop Bridge) to wrap legacy desktop apps as Store packages. The tooling existed and some apps were converted, but the conversion effort was nontrivial and adoption was limited. Developers that already had distribution channels and update mechanisms saw little value in repackaging. (learn.microsoft.com)

Windows 11: open policies without immediate payoff​

Windows 11’s Store revived hope by opening the marketplace to all desktop app types and even enabling third‑party storefronts to appear as discoverable apps inside the Microsoft Store. Microsoft announced that developers could use their own commerce systems and keep 100% of revenue for non‑gaming apps — a radical divergence from the default revenue‑share models used by mobile stores. That policy change removed one big business disincentive for publishing to the Store. But the availability of apps is a lagging indicator: developers still need certainty that listing their app brings the discoverability and update guarantees they want. Early openness did not immediately translate into mainstream user adoption. (theverge.com)

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Where Microsoft has actually improved the Store​

Policy and economics — the incentives finally line up​

Microsoft’s decision to let non‑game apps use alternative payment systems (keeping 100% of in‑app revenue) and to permit third‑party stores inside the Microsoft Store reoriented the economic calculus for many publishers. This wasn’t a cosmetic change: it materially lowers the cost of being on Microsoft’s platform and removes a major friction point that long discouraged distribution via the Store. The original Windows 11 announcement in 2021 began this shift; Microsoft has continued to refine policy and rollout mechanics since then. (theverge.com)
In 2024–2025 Microsoft rolled out further developer-friendly steps: streamlined publishing paths, support for common packaging formats (MSIX, APPX), and removal of certain onboarding friction points, making it easier for small publishers and independent developers to list software. This practical openness is a tectonic shift away from the lock‑in posture that once defined app marketplaces. (theverge.com)

Real apps, real packaging, real updates​

For the first time the Store lists mainstream, full desktop experiences (Discord, Zoom, OBS Studio, Slack, Spotify, Visual Studio Code and others) in their native forms. That’s a critical credibility milestone: the Store is no longer a repository of trimmed-down, sandboxed experiments. In many cases Microsoft has enabled packaging approaches that let a developer continue to ship their existing installer while still being discoverable and updatable through Microsoft’s mechanisms. (windowscentral.com)

An update orchestration platform​

Perhaps the most consequential engineering change is Microsoft’s Windows Update orchestration for third‑party apps: an API and service model that allows selected third‑party apps to register as update providers and have updates scheduled and delivered through Windows Update’s intelligent orchestration. That addresses the worst of the fragmentation: dozens of independent updaters, background services, autostart entries, and fragile installers. In effect, Microsoft is offering the centralized update behavior many administrators and users wanted — without forcing apps into a single packaging model. The orchestrator is in private preview and adoption will be gradual, but it’s the technical glue the Store needed to be the reliable updater Windows users imagined a decade ago. (theverge.com)

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Why the changes may finally be sufficient — and where they still fall short​

The good: the checklist for a functional app store​

If you map the original vision against Microsoft’s current moves, several boxes are now ticked:

• Open app acceptance: Win32, MSIX, UWP, PWA, Electron and more can appear in the Store.
• Developer economics: use your own payment platform for non‑game apps and keep revenues.
• Discoverability: third‑party storefront apps are discoverable in the Store catalogue.
• Update orchestration: a path to centralized, non‑disruptive updates via Windows Update or Store/WinGet integration.
• Lower barriers: simplified developer onboarding and fewer punitive fees reduce friction.

If these features are widely adopted, the Store becomes a genuinely useful distribution and update channel for both consumers and enterprises. The benefits are concrete: fewer background updaters, improved security from vetted packages, easier app discovery for mainstream users, and a single place to audit installed software across a fleet. (theverge.com)

The remaining gaps — adoption, certification, and trust​

However, policy and plumbing alone don’t guarantee success. Microsoft still faces three stubborn problems:

• Developer inertia and engineering cost: Packaging for the Store, integrating with the orchestrator APIs, or adopting MSIX can require engineering work. Many large vendors will only do this if the user benefit and distribution reach are obvious and measurable.
• Certification quality and false positives: The Store’s historical weaknesses (clones, low-quality listings) created skepticism among users and reviewers. Microsoft must keep quality control rigorous while remaining fast and developer‑friendly, which is a difficult operational balance. Early efforts at cleanup (removing thousands of scammy apps around 2014) showed Microsoft can act, but the baseline of trust must be rebuilt. (computerworld.com)
• Enterprise controls and third‑party stores: While corporations value central management, integrating third‑party storefronts into enterprise policy frameworks introduces new questions: how will admins control updates, how will compliance be enforced, and how will telemetry or logging be standardized? These are solvable, but they require Microsoft to provide clear enterprise-grade tooling and SLAs.

Those constraints mean the Store’s renaissance is promising but not automatic. The most important adoption decisions still live with developers and IT pros. (theregister.com)

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Technical primer: the pieces that matter to developers and IT teams​

Packaging and distribution options​

• MSIX / APPX — Modern package formats that support atomic updates, clean uninstall, and Store certification benefits.
• Win32 wrapped for the Store — The Desktop Bridge (Project Centennial) lets existing Win32 apps be packaged for Store distribution. It reduces friction for repackaging but isn’t a silver bullet. (learn.microsoft.com)
• Progressive Web Apps (PWA) — For websites and lightweight apps, PWAs remain a fast route to Store presence.
• Standalone installers + WinGet coordination — The Store and Windows Package Manager (winget) can coordinate updates; in practice, some Store‑installed Win32 apps are updated by coordinated winget operations behind the scenes. (windowslatest.com)

Update models and the new orchestration​

Microsoft’s orchestration approach gives developers two realistic choices:

• Continue to manage updates through your existing servers and installers, but register your app as an update provider with Microsoft’s orchestrator so Windows Update can schedule and deliver the update at appropriate times (idle, plugged in, low activity).
• Adopt MSIX and the Store update pipeline for fully certified, atomic updates delivered through the Store CDN.

Either path reduces duplicate updaters and gives admins a consistent audit trail — but the orchestrator currently depends on developer registration and API integration. Adoption will take time and careful testing in the preview program. (theverge.com)

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Practical guidance — how Microsoft can and should finish the job​

For Microsoft (strategic priorities)​

• Continue automatic acceptance of mainstream packaging formats while making the Partner Center submission and certification pipeline faster and less bureaucratic.
• Invest in a high‑quality review process to prevent clones and scams from re‑emerging; be transparent about removals and appeals.
• Provide Enterprise features: group policy templates, Intune integration for update approvals, and offline repository support for controlled deployments.
• Make the Windows Update orchestrator broadly available, with clear SLAs and a structured preview-to‑general‑availability roadmap to reassure enterprise customers.

For developers (practical steps)​

• Evaluate MSIX for simple apps — it brings clean installs and Store update advantages.
• If repackaging is costly, enroll in the orchestrator preview and expose your existing update mechanism via the provided APIs so your updates can be scheduled and delivered reliably.
• Publish a Store listing even if you continue to host the binary — discoverability alone can be worth the small up-front effort, and the Store can host metadata and links while your installer remains the canonical update source. (learn.microsoft.com)

For IT admins and power users​

• Pilot Store-based updates in a controlled group first. Test the orchestrator’s scheduling semantics in real-world battery and activity patterns before deploying widely.
• Use the Store’s reporting and partner tools to maintain visibility into publisher certifications and update histories.
• Maintain policies for third‑party storefronts: treat them like any other third‑party software, and require publishers to provide documentation and compatibility reports for corporate fleets.

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Risks and unanswered questions​

• Security and supply‑chain risk: Opening the Store to many app types increases the attack surface unless Microsoft’s certification and signing processes remain strict. The tradeoff between frictionless publishing and supply‑chain assurance is real.
• Update conflicts: If a developer’s internal updater and Microsoft’s orchestrator both act, update conflicts or redundant downloads could confuse users. Microsoft’s orchestration claims to coordinate with vendor logic, but edge cases will need careful handling in large fleets. (gadgets360.com)
• Economic second‑order effects: Keeping 100% of in‑app revenue for non‑games encourages distribution, but it also raises antitrust and platform-competition questions in regulatory environments. The carve-out for games (where Microsoft keeps a share) creates inconsistent incentives that could affect developers who monetize via in‑app purchases. (theverge.com)
• Legacy performance and UX: Some Store-packaged legacy apps have historically had integration issues (wefted shortcuts, missing background services). Microsoft will need to keep improving packaging guidance and partner tooling to avoid a new generation of installation headaches. User forums in past Windows releases show persistent problems when the Store or app installers break after upgrades.

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Measuring success: what to watch for over the next 12–24 months​

• Growth in Store listings from major desktop publishers (Adobe, Autodesk, Microsoft tools, major browsers).
• Uptake of the orchestrator in enterprise environments and its inclusion in Intune and SCCM/ConfigMgr workflows.
• Reduction in the number of auto‑updaters and background update services reported in telemetry and third‑party surveys.
• Fewer reported Store scams or “clone” apps — a key signal of improved curation.
• Developer sentiment: whether independent developers and major ISVs report that Store distribution and update pipelines save resources and reach new users.

If those metrics trend positively, Microsoft will have turned a decade of mistakes into a practical, flexible app ecosystem that finally delivers the original promise: secure discovery and reliable updates for Windows users.

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Conclusion​

Microsoft’s Store misfire began with a product and platform philosophy mismatch in Windows 8 — an attempt to force a touch-first, sandboxed model on a desktop ecosystem that had different needs. Over the next decade the company oscillated between closed platforms and incremental openness, creating the perception of a broken app marketplace.
Today’s Microsoft Store is not the same animal. The combination of broader app acceptance, developer-friendly economics, and a real technical path to unify updates addresses the three structural failures that kept the Store irrelevant: poor developer incentives, fractured update mechanisms, and weak curation. The new Windows Update orchestration platform and the willingness to let developers keep their revenue (for non‑games) remove long‑standing barriers. That does not guarantee success — adoption will ride on developer effort, enterprise validation, and Microsoft’s ability to maintain strong certification and security controls — but it does mean the Store now looks like the practical, useful solution it should have been.
For Windows users, the practical advice is simple: revisit the Microsoft Store, test the apps you rely on, and watch how updates are handled. For developers and IT pros, the time to experiment is now — participate in previews, test the orchestrator, and consider packaging strategies that minimize update noise for end users. If Microsoft executes on reliability and trust, the company can finally deliver the centralized, easy‑to‑manage app ecosystem Windows needed from the start. (theverge.com)

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Source: PCMag UK Microsoft’s App Store Has Been Broken Since Windows 8. Can It Finally Be Fixed?