Nokia, AT&T looking for apps for North America users

SAN FRANCISCO, California — Developers now have 10 million more reasons to create their next great app on Nokia smartphones.

Nokia and AT&T have announced an unprecedented developer contest with $10 million in cash and prizes.

Winning applications are selected by Nokia, AT&T and, for the first time, by consumers who can use their downloading power to indicate their favorites.

The 2010 Calling All Innovators, North America contest is open to developers from around the world to create apps for North American consumers.

All submitted apps will be made available exclusively for download via the Ovi Store by Nokia which is filled with thousands of apps, games and media from the content industry’s biggest names along with independent developers.

With AT&T as the exclusive co-judge, developers have a unique opportunity to get started developing for the latest Nokia devices, including the Nokia N8.

Nokia, in conjunction with AT&T, is also inviting developers to a free session, hosted during the CTIA Enterprise and Applications in San Francisco, for a special tour of Qt and Nokia Web Runtime and Java tools.

Additionally, each participating developer will receive a complimentary Nokia N8 developer pack from Nokia. 

Developers can register for the free session at http://www.ctiaenterpriseandapps.com/events/eventdetails.cfm/1154.

Developers have until Jan. 28, 2011 to submit their applications in more than 17 categories.

For the first time, consumers will contribute to the finalist selection process by “voting” with their download power; the number of downloads — both free and paid — counts as part of the winning criteria.

The final judging will be made by Nokia and AT&T where three winners in each category will be selected.

Additionally, an overall contest app and game will be selected as grand prize winners. Category prize winners will receive $150,000 each for a total of $4 million and grand prize winners will receive an additional $100,000 each.

Although submissions must be relevant for the North American consumer, developers from around the world can participate.

Winning developers will also receive more than $6 million in marketing promotion by Nokia and AT&T in the North American market.

“The commitment from Nokia is a clear message that we are serious about the North American market,” said Purnima Kochikar, VP of Forum Nokia.

“Developers have the tools, the support from AT&T and the marketing power of Nokia to get visibility for their apps,” Kochikar added. “Additionally, developers can make their Qt-based app available in Ovi Store to Nokia customers globally, reaching tens of millions of customers,” Kochikar added.

Contest details, judging criteria and submission categories can be found at http://www.callingallinnovators/10M.