Microsoft subsidized development of some popular apps for Windows Phone (e.g., Angry Birds). They paid for these. They were necessary to claw away at some market share.

Chen seems to think he's entitled . . . and this is one reason why BlackBerry is utterly doomed. Now I wouldn't develop a BB app even if he paid me :-)

But while we're at it, maybe we do need some regulation, so we can hold app developers at gunpoint (because that's what laws do, in the final argument) and force them to cough up the goods. In fact, I have an old Palm Pilot VII in a box somewhere that is being discriminated against and would be perfectly useful if only it had some apps... </snark>