Hewlett Packard is looking to build an application ecosystem around its OpenFlow-enabled switches and virtual SDN controller with a new marketplace for software-defined services. Set to go live in the second half of 2014, the cloud-based HP SDN App Store will enable partners to sell applications through a “secure, private portal” to customer environments.

Starting this November, converged infrastructure partners and independent developers will be able to develop solutions for the store using the HP SDN Development Kit. The free SDK includes simulation tools, a virtual lab and a validation test, in addition to documentation, guides and code samples. HP said that the development kit will be complemented by technical support and OpenFlow integration services.

“With SDN the networking industry has an opportunity to disruptively innovate and is now primed for a monumental leap forward,” said Bethany Mayer, the senior vice president and general manager of HP’s Networking group. “HP has created the industry’s most comprehensive SDN product portfolio as well as an open SDN ecosystem, which offers an environment for enterprises and partners to rapidly tune the network to their business and application needs.”

HP will be showcasing its upcoming app store at Interop New York. During the previous Interop gathering in June, the hardware behemoth unveiled HP FlexFabric 11908, a first-of-its-kind OpenFlow aggregation switch that can improve virtualization application performance by as much 50 percent. The platform was demonstrated alongside the security-oriented HSR 6800 router series and new middleware for delivering enterprise services in VMware environments.

A couple weeks ago, cloud broker RightScale augmented its flagship service management solution to abstract network management in multi-cloud environments. The company added access controls, a set of standardized configurations for migrating applications between different platforms, and a change log.