Microsoft have started sharing the software development kit of their upcoming Windows Phone version, 8.1, with developers.
The move comes ahead of the Build developer conference scheduled for the first week of April, where the Redmond based company will unveil Windows Phone 8.1 for developers.
An early developer preview will be released in April, possibly after the Build event. But the Verge reports that Microsoft have already begun sharing the SDK with a few “select partners and developers”. This probably means that Nokia, Samsung and HTC have access to the SDK. Also worth noting is that, anyone who has access to the developer preview program, can upgrade their phone to Windows Phone 8.1, after the preview program’s release.
Earlier this week, leaked screenshots showed the Windows 8.1 Action Center, a notification center which displays a set of system toggles and notifications from apps. A week before that, reports emerged that Microsoft will integrate a voice-activated personal assistant, called “Cortana” will be featured in Windows Phone 8.1. Microsoft had invested $15 Million in the location-based social networking service Foursquare, and use their data to improve the search results in Bing and also in the Maps application.