Tapjoy To Name Service As CFO
- by Gavin O'Malley @mp_gavin, July 9, 2013
Tapjoy is perhaps best known for its “Mobile Value Exchange” model, which rewards consumers with virtual currency or premium in-app content in exchange for watching videos.
Advertisers pay on a cost-per-completed-view basis, so they are given some assurance that consumers view the entire video. They can also recommend secondary actions upon completion of the video, driving consumers to do things such as “Visit Us on Facebook” and “Join the Conversation on Twitter.”
Like many startups, however, Tapjoy has changed significantly since its founding in 2007 as a mobile app developer. The company first morphed into a mobile app monetization platform in 2009. A year later, social gaming monetization company Offerpal Media acquired Tapjoy, and shortly thereafter adopted Tapjoy’s name as its own.
Tapjoy has spent the past year reshuffling its management team. In March, the company brought on Jeff Drobick to fill the newly created position of chief product officer. Most recently president and CEO of Slashdot publisher Geeknet Media, Drobick spent 12 years at eBay, where he was the vice president of information management and delivery, as well as product development.
Late last year, meanwhile, Steve Wadsworth -- a former president of the Disney Interactive Media Group -- was tapped to lead Tapjoy as president and CEO.
By most indications, Wadsworth took over a company on the move. At the time of his appointment, Tapjoy said its network of developers boasted more than 100 million monthly active participants, and had already reached more than a billion mobile devices.
From 2010 to 2011, Tapjoy reportedly grew sales from $20 million to over $100 million -- and that was despite app-gatekeeper Apple’s decision to ban incentivized downloads.
