Making it easier for developers to monetize their apps [Q&A]

Anybody can develop a mobile app, but making money out of it is another matter. Accepting adversing is a popular route but it involves linking the app to a specific network and that means making code changes if you decide to switch at a later date.

Estonian company MoneyTap is aiming to change that and put the developer in control. We spoke to the company's business development manager Pavel Goryakin to find out how.

BN: Why do traditional ad networks fail to deliver?

PG: Ad networks have limited coverage. More often than not, their demand is tied to a certain territory and a fixed group of local advertisers. Networks are committed to deliver the best traffic out there to these specific advertisers, albeit there may be a higher bidder on the market. That's how game developers potentially miss out on better demand and lose money.

Besides, a single ad network cannot guarantee optimal fill rate. Any malfunction or failure to render an ad at a given point results in revenue losses all the same. Whereas other, albeit lower paying, networks could pick up the request and fill the channel. One soldier does not make a battle in this business.

Now, let's take a look at it from the user prospective. One network means the same advertisers and, not surprisingly, same ads all along. However loyal, any gamer grows weary of seeing identical content, which results in a diminishing click-through rate and jeopardized user experience. A slippery slope, isn't it?

BN: What makes MoneyTap different?

PG: MoneyTap is not an ad network, it's a developer-made tool for optimizing developer revenues. Its goal as a supply side platform is to get the utmost out of 250+ ad networks, and we employ quite a few smart techniques to achieve that.

We don't deal with direct advertisers and have no commitments to the brands whatsoever, so we just sell the developer’s inventory at the best CPM rate in every given region, no matter what. Unlike the competing mediating solutions or separate ad networks, we always backfill with the next highest bidder if the top pick network fails to deliver an ad.

MoneyTap is a turnkey monetization solution that lifts the burden off the publishers so they can focus on R&D. The only thing developers have to do is integrate a single comprehensive SDK, and they are all set.

Here's what we do for the app publisher:

• Come up with UX and ad placement recommendations to ensure seamless impressions and user satisfaction
• Analyze the app’s traffic against the entire pool of ad networks, evaluate the results, define priorities and build custom waterfalls
• Create IDs for all ad formats in all ad networks
• Communicate with ad networks on technical and accounting issues
• Track third party SDK updates and roll them out in subsequent iterations of MoneyTap SDK.

BN: So there's no recoding required in order to switch ad networks?

PG: Once MoneyTap SDK is integrated, we take charge of all network management issues. All third-party network integrations are performed on the MoneyTap sever side, so the developer doesn’t have to waste time and bloat the app code to add yet another network. It's already there. A single SDK delivers multiple networks.

BN: Which platforms does it support?

PG: MoneyTap supports iOS, Android and Unity platforms.

BN: How are payments handled?

PG: MoneyTap goes the extra mile to facilitate developers' accounting. We collect payouts from 250+ networks and deliver the net payment to the developer.

BN: Is it easy for developers to see how well they're performing?

PG: The system displays transparent revenue reports easily filtered by app and region, so developers have a clear insight into their finances.

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