Helsinki, Finland and San Francisco-based Applifier, a company that helps game developers acquire and monetize users through its suite of tools, announced today that it has raised $4 million in its Series B funding round. The round was led by Lifeline Ventures with participation from previous investors MHS Capital, PROFounders and others. The company will use the funding to work on its recently launched products Everyplay and Impact, in addition to expanding its team of developers in its San Francisco offices.
The company launched its Facebook cross-promotion ad network for game developers in late 2010, and has since grown to include over 500 social games and a network that reaches over 150 million people. “Our focus has always been about helping developers, first being developers ourselves, and building an understanding of what developers need to succeed. So this is really a continuation on that front,” said Jussi Laakkonen in an interview with BetaKit.
Applifier’s product Everyplay is a software development kit (SDK) developers can integrate into their mobile games which gives gamers the ability to see and share instant replays of what they love most about the game. Developers can choose how they plan to integrate it, ranging from providing a replay for all gameplay, or prompting users with a button to record what they want to share on popular networks like Facebook and Twitter.
Impact on the other hand replaces traditional banner ads in mobile games, with Laakkonen noting that he believes they had the same annoyance factor that pop-up ads had for websites before the advent of pop-up blockers. With game discovery still being a challenge for most mobile game developers, Applifier will now offer another SDK developers can integrate into their apps to gamify game trailers within games. Gamers will be incentivized to opt in to watching ads and trailers for other games in order to receive digital rewards, something Applifier believes gamers will do willingly because not only do they get something in return, they’re discovering other games.
The SDK for Everyplay will be made available for free to encourage gamers to share their game play action, but will have the option for developers to promote what users of their app share to a wider audience for a small fee. Impact on the other hand will function much like a traditional ad network where those looking to acquire users will pay per installation.
With its instant replays feature, the company is looking to be for mobile gaming what platforms like Twitch.tv and Machinima are for PC and console gaming, and it’s going up against similar platforms like Y Combinator alum Kamcord. It will be looking to launch an updated version of Everyplay in 2013 which will enable gamers to add a picture of themselves or a video overlay on top of the recorded gaming session. Even with its new product launches, Laakkonen added that they will still work on improving and supporting their cross promotion platform on Facebook. With an existing network of mobile game developers using the platform, the two new SDKs will give their user base additional means to get the word out, making Applifier a go-to network for mobile game discovery and sharing.