I received an email from Microsoft this afternoon ( online version) prompting me to “Join the developer movement” and create a Windows Mobile app. The email encouraged me to “start something” and “be an early bird, not an angry bird.” It even offered a discounted App Hub membership. I would find this insulting if it weren’t so funny. Microsoft is asking me to “join” a movement towards mobile software development in 2012 after I’ve been developing mobile apps for years. Huh.

Microsoft is offering rewards for publishing “quality” apps. As I covered previously, they’re trying to temp existing .Net developers to write mobile apps by making sure that developing these apps is as easy as possible. That’s a totally laudable goal! However, they’re also trying to bribe developers into making apps for them, and frankly I’m not interested.

Publish an app? Get a set of Beats headphones! Two apps? Free Xbox! Three apps? You’ve hit the jackpot with publicity across Microsoft’s Canadian Developer Blogs!

Apple has never had to bribe anyone to write quality iOS apps. While some developers may be incentivized by free toys to develop Windows Mobile apps, I’ll stick with writing iOS apps where I get paid real money.