Microsoft said that since its launch of Windows Phone 8 in late October, it is experiencing a “sustained 40 percent increase in Windows Phone app submissions”, although it did not provide any additional figures to indicate how big this uplift actually is.

The comments were made as the company detailed its app certification plans for the Christmas holiday sales period. It said it will have a “full staff on-hand” throughout the period, with only three days when there will be no testing – 24th and 25th of December, and 1 January.

The company provided guidance of five business days for apps to pass through the approval process.

Microsoft recently said its Windows Phone Store now has a catalogue of 120,000 apps, with 46 of the top 50 “most popular, heavily used” apps on other platforms now available.