Consuming a WCF RestFul API from android not from wifi connection

Question

I have just completed my first WCF REST api that makes use of JSon for posting data back to a client app. As part of the dev process I made a quick sample c# forms app for testing. I serialize the incoming Json response and bind to gridview. An example would be of retrieving Balances for the associated ID's of accounts. I have yet to host this, but the idea is to host it on a client server, and for them to be able to develop 3rd party apps.

I really really want to develop a simple sample Windows Phone or Android app, for showcasing as well as learning how to access this hosted service. I have found plenty of articles on accessing via being connected to wifi. But, say I want to develop an app and distribute this on an app store. For users connecting via mobile connection, say 4G, how would this be achieved? If I host via IIS on a server, would I be able to use the URL in a client Android/Windows phone etc. app, authenticate via an API key and retrieve the data?

Please can someone advise on how to go about or where to start please?

Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

You would buy windows web hosting and deploy the WCF REST app there, it would be available on a global domain like http://myapp.com/wcf-app . Android & iPhone apps would connect to the global address and view the information from the JSON requests, as could any one with a browser.