Windows Phone Store And Dev Center Expanded, Updated

Microsoft has updated the Windows Phone Store and Dev Center, which includes an expansion of the Store's market and the addition of ratings requirements for games in Russia and Taiwan. This represents the latest in a string of updates that the company has regularly pushed out to both services, and, according to Microsoft, are designed to provide enhancements, among other things.

First up is the Windows Phone Store, which has been expanded to 42 new markets. New locations include the UAE, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Cameroon, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Kenya, Pakistan, Niger, Congo, Armenia, Uganda, and many more. This brings the total number of markets with Windows Phone Store to 113.

In addition, new rating requirements have been implemented for games available in Russia and Taiwan. Games published in Russia are required to have a PEGI (Pan European Game Information) rating, as well as a rating certificate. Games published in Taiwan must have a CSSR (Computer Software Rating Regulation) rating. This is done via a self-rating system the game's developer has to complete and submit via the Dev Center.

The new rating requirements are for new games and updated games. For Taiwan, the requirement goes into effect on January 1. In addition to those two changes, there's now the added privacy policy URL, making it easier for users to access this information. Finally, the email addresses for beta testers can now be validated during the submission process.

[via Windows]