Carriers
looking to reduce subsidies might be putting more of their eggs in the Windows
Phone basket, as Microsoft’s mobile operating system has showing signs of
health in recent months.

According
to a blog post yesterday on AllAboutWindowsPhone.com, Windows Phone Marketplace
has broken 100,000 available apps since it launched 20 months ago, with 26,493 pieces
of mobile software added in the past month.  

For
some perspective on those numbers, consider that Android reached 100,000
available apps in 24 months, while Apple’s App Store hit the milestone in 16
months.  

A
lack of available apps has been one of the main strikes against Microsoft’s
struggling OS, but the company has aggressively pursued developers over the
past year, in some instances offering cash and devices in return for support of
Windows Phone 7. 

Equally
impressive is the slight uptick in market share seen recently. According to the
latest numbers from ComScore, Windows Phone saw a slight uptick in market
share, rising from 3.9 percent of the total market in April to 4 percent in
May. That’s after finally stopping the bleeding and stabilizing with flat share
in February and March.  

AT&T
has reportedly spent a lot of money to promote Nokia’s Lumia line of Windows
Phone 7 devices, which come with lower subsidies than Apple’s iPhone.  

During
a recent investor conference,
AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega talked up Windows Phone 7. During prepared
remarks and in questions afterward, de la Vega repeatedly referenced the HTC
One X, as well as the Lumia 900 as the most recent, high-end phones he thought
would please customers.