Nokia (NYSE: NOK) is looking to give its Ovi Store a leg-up, and AT&T (NYSE: T) is happy to oblige. The pair has teamed to offer $10 million in cash and prizes for a new developer contest.
The amount on offer through the Calling All innovators contest is actually $4 million ($150,000 per winning developer, in 17 categories; three winners each). But Nokia and AT&T say they are also putting up $6 million in “marketing promotion”.
That’s something Nokia’s Ovi platform itself could actually use, as it tries to front up against iTunes Store and Android Market.
Nokia has been trying to please developers in the last few weeks, pledging to take on the cost developers usually incur to “sign” submitted apps and introducing in-app purchasing.
This is not an unprecedented or desperate move – app developer contests have become a standard way in which platform and service gateways are gathering new ideas and fodder.
But the amount on offer is amongst the biggest yet. Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) recently awarded a