Microsoft Rebrands Marketplace As Windows Phone Store

Microsoft is in the process of rolling out some major changes to its official Windows Phone website. The new look and feel will be rolled out in Australia and New Zealand initially and will work its way around the world in the coming weeks. With the new site, you'll see a cleaner design and some new menu options such as News which provides information about Windows Phone-related news and announcements.

One of the biggest changes taking place however, is the retiring of the name Marketplace. Instead, the online store will be known as the Windows Phone Store. Part of the reasoning behind this is to keep some common ground with Windows 8 and its Windows Store for apps and games. In fact, the Windows Phone Store shares the same icon as the Windows 8.

In addition to a new name, the Window Phone Store will receive a few improvements including a better Search box that uses the Bing search engine, better clarification of labels, new browsing options to help you find apps easier, a Spotlight area with recently-published apps, apps with sexual content will be less prominent, and more. The new store will also include a mechanism for reporting an app because it's offensive, has technical problems, or didn't work as it was advertised.